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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/29852985">Secret Agent Rose and Schnee</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/Meganrrothstein/pseuds/Meganrrothstein'>Meganrrothstein</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>RWBY</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>Alternate Universe - No Powers, Alternate Universe - Spies &amp; Secret Agents, F/F, F/M, Light Angst, Mild Smut, Multi, Secret Identity, Slow Burn, Spies &amp; Secret Agents</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>In-Progress</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2021-03-05</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2021-03-13</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-15 23:47:05</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>Teen And Up Audiences</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>No Archive Warnings Apply</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>11</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>31,781</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/29852985</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/Meganrrothstein/pseuds/Meganrrothstein</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>Secret agent Weiss Schnee is partnered up with Ruby Rose, a new and upcoming agent in the spy world. Together they are tasked with uncovering lackeys of Cinder Falls AKA the Fall Maiden.</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Blake Belladonna/Yang Xiao Long, Lie Ren/Nora Valkyrie, Ruby Rose/Weiss Schnee</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>53</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>77</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>1. Club Creep</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
      <p>Inspired by Eva_96</p>
    </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Weiss heard her scroll ding. Pausing her workout, she walked into the gym's bathroom. Safely behind a stall door, she checked the message. 'Miss Schnee,' it said. 'There is a Rose waiting for you in Vale. It is of utmost importance you find them.' Weiss read the words several times. If the message was so vague it meant this mission was important. </p><p>Walking out of the bathroom, Weiss grabbed her bag. As she made her way to her car another message dinged on her scroll. 'The seasons are changing,' was all that was said. Weiss thought about what that could mean as she drove to her apartment. </p><p>When she got inside, she noticed an envelope on the floor addressed to her. Inside, there was a ticket to vale and a postcard of trees in the middle of autumn, their colorful leaves falling to the floor. Flipping the card over as she placed the ticket on the counter, she read, 'Emerald and Black make a good match.' Sighing, Weiss walked to her closet to grab her suitcase and pack. She rarely did field missions due to her above average analytical skills, but it seemed, HUNTRESS, the organization she was working for, needed her in action.</p><p>It had been a few years since she was last in Vale. She attended Beacon University to get her bachelor's degree in business there before she moved back to Atlas to finish her schooling. As she packed, Weiss picked out outfits that would go with any situation she might encounter. She made sure to pack black and green clothes in case the postcard was of any significance to her cover. The ticket she had was for later that afternoon and she didn't want to accidentally miss her flight so she didn't waste time getting ready.</p><p>As she left that night for the airport, she contemplated whether or not she should tell her family that she was leaving. Deciding she didn't want to risk blowing her cover, Weiss kept to herself and hoped no one would notice she was gone.</p><p> </p><p>During her flight, she thought about what the mission might be about. She knew that her superiors were searching for members of the GRIMM organization, in hopes of discovering who was in charge of attacks on Remnant. Weiss figured that they had a lead on an upcoming attack and had sent her to try and stop it before it happens. </p><p>As she got off her plane and walked to the pick up area she saw a woman standing with a sign that said, 'My Snowflake' on it. Weiss groaned internally. On her first and only mission with Yang Xiao Long, she had decided that she needed nicknames like ice queen and snowflake instead of the code name she was given at the time.</p><p>Walking up to the girl with a frown on her face, she asked cautiously, "Rose?"</p><p>The girl nodded as she spoke, "My snowflake," she said as she pulled Weiss in for a hug. "I'll explain later," she whispered in her ear during the hug. Weiss only nodded as she hugged the girl back. Rose, or whatever her name was took her bags from her so she could hold her hand. </p><p>If Weiss was not as confused about what was happening, she would have blushed at the contact. They walked together to a nearby hotel in silence, Rose taking the lead. She didn't stop at the front desk when they first walked in and Weiss assumed she checked in before her. The girl led her to a room where her things were set up. </p><p>"Where will I be staying," Weiss asked. </p><p>The girl sheepishly rubbed her neck. "Um, I recommend you read our assignment details before all the questions." Weiss nodded and shrugged her jacket off. Grabbing the paper Rose had on her desk, she sat down as she took a look at it. </p><p>'Operatives Ruby Rose and Weiss Schnee will pose as a couple touring through Vale. On the second night of their arrival in Vale, they will head to Club Creep, a known meeting place for GRIMM members. While there they will be on the lookout for Emerald Sustari and Mercury Black, known associates of Cinder Fall, known to many as the Fall Maiden. Sustari is known best for making escapes in broad daylight and Black is known for faking leg injuries to get out of situations (both of his legs are robotic prosthetics) and neither should be let out of sight. Schnee is best equipped to deal with Sustari and Rose will deal with Black. Upon finding the two, separate them inconspicuously and bring them into custody. </p><p>No alias' will be given to Schnee or Rose. Their stories are to match their real lives as much as possible, both targets having a sense for when someone is lying to them. If asked about where they are working, the answer will be Schnee Dust Company. The two met at one of the charity balls held by Jacques Schnee and got together immediately after first meeting. Both operatives are expected to spend the day getting to know one another so no holes can be found in their stories. </p><p>If either Schnee or Rose is in a dangerous situation and are in need of assistance, text the number that sent you your mission activation the phrase, I need a drink. The message must be spelled out completely or else help will not come. If this mission is failed HUNTRESS may never be able to find out who is at the top of all these attacks. BURN AFTER READING.' </p><p>Weiss frowned as she looked over the images of Mercury and Emerald. Turning to the girl, Ruby, who was standing behind her with a lighter she asked, "Do you know how they got the heads up about Black and Sustari?" </p><p>She handed Ruby the paper and followed her to the bathroom as she lit it on fire. "The Sunny Dragon and Kitty Cat have been trailing them for the past few months. They were originally going to be the one to lead this mission, but Ya- I mean the Sunny Dragon was identified by one of the targets and blew their cover," she explained.</p><p>Weiss nodded, contemplating the information. She was part of the team that assigned Yang Xiao Long whose code name was the Sunny Dragon and Blake Belladonna, code name Kitty Cat to survey Vacuo. "I see. Well I hope this will be simple enough. What should we do in the meantime?" </p><p>Ruby doused the flame in water as most of the paper burned away. "Go to dinner, catch a movie, stay in and order room service, spend the night in bed. Anything you want to we can do," Ruby said with a wink. </p><p>Weiss blushed as she scowled at her. "We can order room service while we come up with a story. Also, find where you'll be sleeping. I'm not sharing a bed with you."</p><p>"But I'm good in bed," Ruby said with a grin.</p><p>"You're insufferable," Weiss said as she pushed her and walked into the room. Pulling her luggage onto the bed, Weiss started to unpack, planning her outfits in her head as she took out her clothes.</p><p> </p><p>"Why did you fall for me?" Ruby asked Weiss as she took a bite of her pizza. They had ordered room service after Weiss had settled into the room they would be sharing and were coming up with their cover story for how they got together. </p><p>"Hmm, why would I fall for you?" Weiss asked as she contemplated the question.</p><p>"Because of my charm and good looks," she suggested with a sleazy grin.</p><p>Weiss examined her from the red tips of her hair to the small portion of her stomach that was visible due to the tightness of her tank top. "No, you don't have any of that." Ruby pouted at her before taking a third slice of pizza from the box they were sharing. "Maybe I could say your childlike antics helped me realize there was more to life than work," Weiss threw out.</p><p>"That could work," Ruby said, nodding. "How did we keep our relationship out of the public eye? Your father is the world's most important business man which makes you important by default."</p><p>"Easy. We were long distance due to work and when we did get together, we preferred to spend the night in." Weiss said with a smile, proud her actual life experiences with passed boyfriends could come in handy.</p><p>"I'd like to spend the night in you." Ruby was raising her eyebrows up and down. Weiss contemplated throwing her slice of pizza at her, but decided it would just be a waste.</p><p>"You know I heard that one before," she told her. "A brute of a blonde decided that pick up lines, pet names, and jokes were going to be the only way we got through our mission in Mistral a few years back. She said those words exactly I believe."</p><p>Ruby burst into laughter causing Weiss to get confused. "You," she said after catching her breath, "You're the ice queen Yang was talking about! Oh my Oum that was you!"</p><p>Weiss frowned. "You know Yang?" </p><p>Ruby nodded at her with a smile. "We're sisters. I know we don't look alike but we are. She's the whole reason I got into this spy stuff."</p><p>"This isn't 'spy stuff' Ruby, this is serious work made up of only professionals," Weiss scolded.</p><p>"Tell me then, why are we here?"</p><p>Weiss cocked an eyebrow at her, but answered nonetheless. "Because we're on a mission."</p><p>"A secret mission," Ruby corrected. </p><p>Weiss rolled her eyes. "A secret mission to bring certain individuals who wish to cause the world harm into custody."</p><p>Ruby pointed her slice of pizza at her as she spoke. "You forgot to mention how we would normally have to use an alias. So technically we're secret agents working for a secret organization, spying on bad guys so we can take them down. Which makes all this," Ruby motioned around with her pizza slice, "Spy stuff."</p><p>Pinching the bridge of her nose, Weiss took a deep breath. "Forget the looks, I can see how you and Yang are related."</p><p>"Is it our great sense of style?" Ruby asked as she ran her free hand over the fuzzy pajama pants she was wearing. </p><p>"No," Weiss told her with a frown. "It's the idiocy that seems to run in the family." Putting her empty paper plate on the table, she walked to the bathroom. "I'm going to take a shower," she announced. </p><p>Ruby asked, "Can I join you?" All she heard was the bathroom door locking as Weiss stepped inside.</p><p> </p><p>Weiss was groggy and grumpy as Ruby had put it as they walked through the city hand in hand. She had barely gotten any sleep the night before with Ruby's constant need to be touching her in some way as they slept. With her free hand she rubbed the sleep from her eyes. Ruby tugged her around Vale all day long, showing her the different spots she would go to when she was attending Beacon. </p><p>Weiss insisted that it was pointless since she had attended Beacon too and didn't need to be told about local hotspots. Ruby just ignored her and brought her from place to place anyway. After a few hours of walking around Weiss said, "Ruby, we're stopping. My feet hurt and you've been dragging me around to places I already know for hours."</p><p>Ruby looked at her, her eyes shining. "I can carry you," she offered, holding her arms out. </p><p>Weiss glared at her. "No," she said before tugging Ruby towards a restaurant. "We're getting something to eat before we head out. I don't trust food from clubs." </p><p>"I could eat you and it won't take us nearly as long," Ruby said as she followed her. </p><p>Rolling her eyes, she said, "Ruby Rose, make one more comment like that and I'll leave you alone in the street." She looked back at her over her shoulder and watched as she pretended to zip her mouth shut. Walking into the restaurant Weiss said, "Table for two please." They took their seats and ordered. Ruby was intent on staring at Weiss throughout the whole dinner causing her eye to twitch as she noticed her out of the corner of her eye. </p><p>"You're beautiful," Ruby commented as she took a sip of wine. Weiss blushed furiously, nearly spitting up her wine.</p><p>"You're annoying," she told her. Ruby just smiled at her.</p><p>"So," she drawled out, "You're mean when you flirt. Good to know."</p><p>Weiss blushed again, "I'm not flirting with you, you dolt. If I was you'd know." Ruby rolled her eyes at her. </p><p>"Are you done?" she asked. Weiss nodded and asked for the check, paying before leaving. "They should be arriving in half an hour," Ruby whispered in her ear as she grabbed her hand. "We need to get there before them." Weiss nodded, imagining the plan in her head as they walked to Club Creep.</p><p> </p><p>Weiss could barely focus as she watched the door of the club. She was dancing on top of Ruby, letting her hands travel around her shoulders as she felt Ruby's on her waist. The music was pulsing in time with the lights and everyone in the club was flush against each other as they moved on the dance floor. </p><p>With the way Ruby was tugging her closer to her and her hot breath on her neck, Weiss was fighting with her body to stay in control. She saw green and gray flash in the doorway as Emerald and Mercury walked in. "They're here," she muttered. Ruby nodded beside her.</p><p>"We wait for them to sit in the booths, you talk to Emerald and I'll get Mercury," she was told as Ruby ran over the plan one more time. Weiss turned in Ruby's arms, leaning her head on her shoulder and raising her arms in the air as Emerald and Mercury walked past. Ruby's hands landed on her hips and pulled her flush against her body.</p><p>Emerald caught sight of their motion and Weiss winked at her as they made eye contact. She was waved at before they made their way into a booth. "Got her," Weiss said. Ruby nodded and walked off to the bar, giving her time to work her magic. She put a sway into her hips as she made her way to the table Emerald was sitting at. "Hey you," she said in her best seductive voice.</p><p>Emerald Looked her up and down with a dumb grin on her face. "Hey there," she said. "Why don't you come sit with us?" </p><p>Weiss smiled at her. "You're so kind," she purred as she slid into the booth next to her. "How long do you plan on staying in town?" she asked, her hand sliding up her leg.</p><p>"Just for the night, but I'm sure we could do a lot in a night," Emerald told her as she traced her finger up Weiss's arm. </p><p>"Emerald," Mercury said from across the table, "She was with a girl."</p><p>"She doesn't mind," Weiss said, tossing a small glare his way. Turning back to Emerald with a smile, she whispered, "She doesn't mind sharing."</p><p>Emerald snaked her arm around her waist. "Neither do I," she whispered into her ear. </p><p>She noticed Ruby across the room with two drinks in her hand. She nodded at her and Weiss made her move. "Well then, come show me your moves on the dance floor." Weiss stood up and pulled Emerald to her feet along with her, dragging her to the dance floor. Just as Mercury was going to call after them Ruby slid into the booth and handed him a drink.</p><p>Smiling at Emerald with lust in her eyes, Weiss turned her back to her and started to grind into her. She felt her hands on her waist and leaned back into her touch. Weiss felt a kiss on her neck and leaned her head to the side. "What's your deal with the brunette?" Emerald asked her, her nails biting into Weiss's sides.</p><p>"Long time girlfriend. Open relationship type thing. We can head back to our hotel room if you want. She'll just join us later." Weiss tried to make her voice as breathy as possible. </p><p>Her answer seemed to satisfy Emerald who tugged on her waist saying, "Well let's go then." Weiss smiled and followed her out of the club. The second they made it out of the building, Weiss backed up against the wall and tugged Emerald on top of her. The girl smiled down at her, placing her hands on the wall around her head. </p><p>Before she could lean in to kiss her, handcuffs were placed around her wrist. Ruby had come up with the idea that back up should wait up outside in case they tried to make a run or they needed help in the club. </p><p>Emerald looked shocked as she told her, "Emerald Sustari, you're under arrest for your involvement with the GRIMM terrorist attacks against the world of Remnant." Blake dragged her away to a transport car that was waiting around the corner. </p><p>"Nice work ice queen," Yang said as she walked up to her. </p><p>Weiss rolled her eyes as she faced Yang with her hands on her hips. "The jobs not done yet. Ruby still hasn't brought Black out yet. I'm going to check up on her." Walking back into the club, Weiss looked at the table she had left Ruby at. When she didn't see them there, she panicked and looked around the club.</p><p>"Weiss," Ruby whisper-yelled from behind her. Weiss turned around as she rushed up to her. </p><p>"Where is he?" she asked in a whisper. Ruby pointed over her shoulder at the bar. She looked and saw Mercury talking to the bartender who noticed them staring and said something that caused him to look over his shoulder at them. Weiss winked at him with a smirk before turning back to Ruby. "Why did you let him stop talking to you?"</p><p>"He said he needed to pee, what was I supposed to do, tell him no?" Ruby asked, throwing her hands into the air. </p><p>Weiss stuck her finger into her chest as she spoke, "Yes, yes you were!"</p><p>"Where's Emerald?" a voice asked from behind her. She turned and saw Mercury towering over her. </p><p>Pointing towards the door, Weiss said in a small voice, "Outside." He looked her over before heading to the door. As he walked out Ruby and Weiss shared a glance before following him through the door. She saw Yang holding him on the ground as she placed handcuffs around his wrist. Sighing in relief, she allowed herself to fall back against Ruby. </p><p>"Good work," Ruby told her as she wrapped an arm around her.</p><p>She scoffed and flicked her forehead. "You almost ruined everything, you dunce. You're lucky you were smart enough to think ahead and call Yang out." </p><p>"Yeah yeah," she said dismissively as she walked with Yang to put Mercury in the transport car. Weiss rolled her eyes as she followed behind her. </p><p>She didn't notice the eyes flaming with rage staring at her as she walked away from the club.</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0002"><h2>2. Fall Maiden</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>Weiss and Ruby are in charge of interrogating Mercury and Emerald, but what happens when they find themselves in hot water.</p>
          </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Weiss sat across from Emerald who was glaring at her. Ruby was next to her and across from her was Mercury. They were driving to headquarters to meet with their superiors in order to put the two into custody. Yang and Blake were in the front of the transport vehicle, occasionally checking in to make sure nothing was wrong.</p>
<p>No words were said throughout the whole trip besides the curses that flowed through Mercury's mouth at the beginning of the endeavor. Weiss made sure to keep her eyes on both their restraints so she would be able to see either one trying to escape. Her fingers were drumming on her thigh, nervously waiting for them to arrive. </p>
<p>The car took a right and then a left before tilting downwards. Weiss felt her ears pop as they went lower underground. The car eventually flattened out and came to a stop. "We're here," Yang called back in a sing-song voice. Weiss rolled her eyes but was grateful for the trip to be over nonetheless. </p>
<p>Blake opened up the door and Weiss grabbed Emerald, shoving her through the door. Once she was out Weiss followed in suit and looked over her shoulder as Ruby did the same thing with Mercury. They were in an empty parking garage with nothing but a small elevator and flight of stairs were. "Are you sure this is the right place?" Weiss asked as she looked back at Yang. </p>
<p>She nodded at her before saying, "Just trust me ice queen." Weiss bristled at the name, but trying to be professional, acted as if it didn't bother her at all. She heard a whirring sound and looked up to see a camera on one of the pillars looking straight at them. Suddenly, the wall in front of them opened up and armed guards with the word HUNTRESS on their arm came rushing towards them. They took Emerald and Mercury out of their hands and marched with them into the dark place they came from. </p>
<p>Weiss followed Blake as she started to walk inside, eager to see what was waiting ahead of them.  </p>
<p> </p>
<p>The four of them were waiting in a room together, drinking coffee and enjoying the mission's success when a man and woman walked into the room. The man had a head full of white hair and was holding a mug while the blonde next to him came in with a clipboard in hand. "Hello Miss Schnee, Miss Xiao Long. It seems like we haven't met yet. My name is Ozpin. I'm the man who put together the HUNTRESS organization in order to put a stop to GRIMM attacks," the man, Ozpin said. Before Weiss could speak he held out his hand and she shut her mouth. "While I'm sure you all have questions for me, right now I just want to congratulate you all on your work. We've been tracking Miss Sustrai and Mr. Black for quite some time now. It's very impressive how you were able to bring them into custody without much trouble." </p>
<p>He turned to the woman next to him and she stepped forward. Her eyes were mainly on her clipboard as she spoke. "Miss Sustrai and Mr. Black have already been brought in for questioning. Neither have said anything and none show any signs of telling us what we need to know any time soon." She eyed Ruby and Weiss before she continued speaking. "Miss Sustrai has requested to speak with Miss Schnee and Miss Rose. We will be sending the two of you to talk to her once this briefing is done. You will be monitored the whole time and if things get too intense, you will be allowed to leave at any moment.</p>
<p>The goal of your talk with Miss Sustrai is to find out who her superiors are. You need to learn who she answers to, the name of any other operatives she knows, any attack on Remnant that the GRIMM are planning and if you can, who is in charge of GRIMM forces. Is that clear?"</p>
<p>Both Weiss and Ruby nodded as they said, "Yes ma'am." </p>
<p>"Very good," she spoke, "You are to speak with her now. You can use any tactic you desire to get the job done, just make sure it's ethical." With a nod, the man and woman left the room. Weiss turned to Ruby who had been standing behind her. Yang had her arm around her neck and was ruffling up her hair with a smile on her face. Ruby was only half heartedly trying to push her off, a small smile on her lips.</p>
<p>"Are you ready to go," she asked when their moment seemed over. Ruby looked up at her and push Yang's arm off her neck before nodding. Not waiting for her, Weiss walked out of the room and looked around. She had been in a HUNTRESS secret base in Atlas, but it was much different then headquarters in Vale.</p>
<p>"This way," Ruby said from behind her as she led her down a hallway. Weiss followed in stride, taking in more of the facility as they made their way to the interrogation rooms. "What are we gonna do when we're in there?" Ruby asked her with a smile. "Some good cop bad cop? One of us talks while the other stares menacingly at her in silence?"</p>
<p>Weiss raised a brow as she stared at her with near disbelief. "We are going to talk to her regularly. There is no need to be extra." </p>
<p>Ruby stopped them in front of a room while pouting. "That's no fun," she said as a guard opened the door for them. Weiss rolled her eyes as they walked in the room. Emerald was sitting at the table with her arms crossed. Weiss noticed shackles around her ankles as she and Ruby took a seat across from her. She was about to ask her what the blonde woman had told them to find out when Ruby spoke before she could. "You asked to speak to us?"</p>
<p>Emerald nodded as she glanced between them. "How did you know we were gonna be at the club?"</p>
<p>Weiss glanced at Ruby before she answered, unsure of what they could give away. "We had a tail on you guys for a while," was all Ruby said. </p>
<p>Emerald seemed to get angry but kept her cool. "Do you know who we were meeting?" she asked, eyeing the two of them. Weiss kept her surprise inside as she asked the question. They were never aware the two were going to be meeting someone, only that they had a chance to bring them into custody.</p>
<p>"We have a guess," Weiss told her, hoping she wouldn't be able to call her bluff. </p>
<p>"Damnit!" she said as her hand hit the table in frustration. Weiss couldn't help but flinch at the noise. "I told Cinder after I saw blondie following us to arrange the meeting another time. She never listens to what I have to say, ever."</p>
<p>Cinder, that was a name they had never heard of before. Ruby leaned forward and asked, "If we're correct Cinder is your direct superior?" Ruby didn't make her question appear to be one made up of vaguely scrounged up information and said it in a way that made it seem like she knew what she was saying was true. </p>
<p>Emerald leaned back in her chair, a low sigh coming out of her. "She chose me to help out with her missions and with digging up whatever intelligence she needed, but she couldn't give a shit about what I say. I told Mercury the first time I saw the blonde girl that she was following us and he told me I was making it up. Then when I saw her again and told Cinder directly, she just ignored my concern." </p>
<p>Weiss nodded along to her story. "Do you have any idea what was going to be discussed at the club tonight?" she asked. When she realized her question might set Emerald off, she quickly added, "Or did she keep that from you too?" </p>
<p>"What do you mean?" she asked as she glanced between the two. </p>
<p>Ruby took over after having caught on to what Weiss was trying to do and said, "Well Mercury told us that Cinder had reached out to him before you guys even got to Vale to tell him what was up. We figured you both knew about what was going on, but I guess I'm wrong." </p>
<p>Emerald glared at them and said through gritted teeth, "I know what was going on." Weiss watched as she looked in on herself basically and sighed. "Mercury told me we were going to go over the plan for how we get her to become a maiden. It's a position in GRIMM that only the most powerful of operatives have. There are only four maidens alive at the same time, fall, winter, spring, and summer. One for each season basically. Cinder had learned the location of the Fall Maiden and had a plan on how to steal her position from her. We were supposed to learn her plan tonight but then you guys picked us up."</p>
<p>Weiss silently cursed in her head. Emerald gave them a huge lead, but still, more would have been nice. "Do you know anyone else Cinder might go to with her plan now that you and Mercury are out of the equation?" Ruby asked from beside her. Weiss realized she was looking for the name of more GRIMM operatives and was impressed with her.</p>
<p>Emerald was hesitant before she answered. "Maybe. I know Mercury and I were the first she picked up and I'd like to think she trusts us the most, but knowing her she's already probably making plans without us." She sighed, seemingly dejected from her own conclusion.</p>
<p>"Who would she go to now that you aren't there?" Ruby asked again to keep her on track.</p>
<p>Emerald thought for a moment before she said, "Maybe Hazel or Watts. Knowing her she'll stay away from Tyrian. He's practically insane and doesn't answer to her anyway. I know both him and Watts are considered to be equals to her. So maybe she'd just go to Hazel, or no one. She could try doing this herself."</p>
<p>Weiss and Ruby both shared a look before nodding. "Does this plan of hers, do you think it involves an attack on Remnant?" Weiss asked, hoping to get more out of her.</p>
<p>Her question seemed to rub Emerald the wrong way. She immediately sat up straight and crossed her arms again like they were when they first walked in. "I don't know," she said. "Cinder didn't tell me much of anything."</p>
<p>Before Weiss could try and correct her mistake, Ruby stood up next to her and said, "We understand. Thank you for talking to us Emerald. I'm sure you must be tired. We'll leave you for the night, but if there's anything else you want to talk about or get of/f your chest, please just ask for us." Ruby motioned for Weiss to follow her and she did. The door opened for them after Ruby knocked. They walked into the hallway where the blonde woman was waiting for them.</p>
<p>"We heard everything," she said. "We're currently looking into the names she gave us and this Fall Maiden. Until we can come up with anything, I recommend you get some rest. You can stay in one of the empty offices for the night. If this Cinder person saw you take Miss Sustrai and Mr. Black into custody, going back to your hotel may not be the safest option. Your belongings will be retrieved for you." The woman nodded at them and made her way down the hallway.</p>
<p>Weiss watched for a moment before turning to Ruby. "Good work in there. That was really impressive," she told her as they went the opposite way the woman did.</p>
<p>Ruby smiled at her and rubbed the back of her neck. "Thanks Weiss. You did really good too. Don't mind Goodwitch's bluntness by the way. She's not into the whole emotions thing. This is just a job for her." Weiss nodded and followed Ruby as she made a turn. </p>
<p>"Do you suppose Cinder might have seen us?" she asked. They stopped in front of an empty office. </p>
<p>Ruby thought for a moment as she let them in. "Maybe. You would think if she did, she would have tried stopping us from taking Mercury and Emerald in though."</p>
<p>"Not unless she didn't care about them." Weiss sat down in an empty chair she saw, exhausted. Ruby pulled a chair up next to her and sat down so her leg was touching Weiss's. She would have told her to stop touching her, but the warmth of another person besides her felt nice. She settled to rolling her eyes as she leaned her head on Ruby's shoulder. She fell fast asleep as Ruby put her arm around her.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Weiss woke to the feeling of her shoulder being shook. Opening her eyes, she could only see red hair covering her eyes. She felt pain in her neck and sat up straight with a groan. She rubbed her neck as she looked around the room with blurry eyes, seeing Ruby shaken awake by Yang. "What time is it?" Ruby asked groggily. </p>
<p>"Time for our next mission," Yang said excitedly. Weiss accepted the cup of coffee Blake handed her gratefully, taking a long sip of the liquid gold. </p>
<p>"Apparently the bartender at Club Creep got a visit this morning from a man who called himself Hazel. Goodwitch wants us to talk to him and see what Hazel wanted," Blake elaborated. Weiss nodded and stood, stretching  out her stiff body. She grabbed her white jacket that was on top of her suitcase, guessing that someone must have brought her and Ruby's stuff from the hotel.</p>
<p>"Do we have time for breakfast?" she asked, following Blake out of the room. Blake nodded, grabbing a donut off of a desk as they walked through the building, passing it to Weiss. She took it with a small smile and broke it in half as Ruby stared at her with puppy dog eyes. Ruby smiled widely at her when she handed her a half. "Stop looking at me like that," she said as she tried to ward off a blush.</p>
<p>"You're the best Weiss," Ruby said before eating her half in one bite. Weiss looked at her with both concern and disgust as they walked into the parking garage. They got into a car and Blake drove them back to Club Creep. Weiss finished the donut in the car before the car stopped outside the club. As they got out, she took a look around the parking lot taking note of the few parked cars. She grimaced as she noticed a car moving back and forth with foggy windows. </p>
<p>Following Ruby into the bar, Weiss watched to see if anyone was watching them. Aside from the overly drunk man sleeping in a booth and the workers at the bar, no one was inside. Weiss spotted the bartender from the night before and headed over to him, Ruby beside her. </p>
<p>"Hey," she said trying to get his attention. The man turned to her and looked over her shoulder.</p>
<p>"Your friends better no break anything," he told her. She looked over her shoulder to see Yang and Ruby messing with the equipment at the empty dj stand.</p>
<p>She rolled her eyes before looking back at the man. "They won't," she said uncertainly. "I heard you spoke with a man named Hazel this morning. I need to know what he said." The man looked at her with a suspicious glances. "Please," she begged, tilting her head as she looked up at him with a smile.  </p>
<p>He grinned down at her and said, "Well if you really want to know, I can tell you over dinner tonight."</p>
<p>"Or you can just tell us now and we won't have to waste our time," Blake said as she walked up to the bar. "Cardin your name was?"</p>
<p>Astonished, he asked, "How did you-"</p>
<p>Blake cut him off, "Cardin Winchester, ex cop and known racist. We don't have to go into details about the past but what we do need is to know what Hazel said to you. So if you don't mind, we've already wasted enough of our time."</p>
<p>His face reddened and Weiss couldn't tell if it was because of embarrassment or anger, but either way he started to talk. "Look, all I know is this huge guy walks up to my bar and starts asking about who left with the green haired girl from the other night. I told him about you and your red headed girlfriend."</p>
<p>"Did he say anything else?" Weiss asked.</p>
<p>Cardin shook his head. "The only thing the big guy talked about was the girl and guy she was with and where they went." </p>
<p>Weiss nodded as Blake thanked him. "If you have any other information for us, call this number." She slid a piece of paper his way before beckoning Ruby and Yang to leave. Weiss waited at the entrance, holding the door open. Before they made their way to the door, a man walked past, bumping into her.</p>
<p>"Watch it," she said, scowling. He turned to her, scars across his chest visible from his lack of shirt and laughed hysterically. Weiss took a step back, alarmed and hit the door. Ruby rushed to her side and put her hand on her back, using herself as a shield between the two. </p>
<p>"Lets go," she muttered, leading her out of the building. The sound of his laughter followed the group of girls as they walked out of the club.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>As they were making their way back to headquarters, Weiss searched through her jacket pockets for chapstick. As she felt a round tube in her pocket, she pulled it out. She went to pull the cap off it but realized it wasn't her chapstick. "Um guys, I found this in my pocket," she said, handing it to Ruby who was sitting next to her.</p>
<p>Yang looked at her through the rear view mirror as Blake turned around in her seat. "What is it?" she asked. Weiss shrugged and watched Ruby pass the tube to Blake.  She examined it for a moment before telling Yang, "Pull over." She nodded and pulled into the parking lot of a supermarket. Blake deposited the tube in Yang's hand as she pulled her scroll out of her pocket.</p>
<p>She dialed a number and put the phone on speaker. It rang for a few moments before someone picked up. "Miss Belladonna? Is everything alright?" Goodwtich's voice came across to them. </p>
<p>"Yes everything is fine. We talked to the barkeep and he told us what little he knew. Weiss found this... thing in her pocket. It's flashing purple and I think it might be a tracker. What should we do?" Blake asked.</p>
<p>The other side of the line was quiet for a moment before the older woman spoke again. "Give the device to Ruby and drop her off near Beacon University. She's still young enough to be considered a student so anyone watching wouldn't be suspicious. Have her walk to the back section of the library and we'll have a team meet her there and deal with it. Until then, you, Miss Xiao Long, and Miss Schnee should lie low. I'll give you a call when we have further directions for you."</p>
<p>The call ended and everyone turned to look at each other. Yang handed Ruby the tracker and started to drive towards Beacon. Their trip was in silence and Weiss thought back to the man who had bumped into her. She shivered at the thought of him slipping something into her pocket without her noticing. The whole idea was unsettling to her. </p>
<p>Ruby's hand made its way to her leg and Weiss looked up at her. She was smiling softly at her and Weiss smiled back at her, placing her hand over hers. They slowly stopped in front of Beacon University and Ruby left with a small wave. She watched her walk off until the car started moving and Ruby disappeared from her line of sight. She sighed as she looked through the front windshield. She was so focused on the thought of Ruby that she didn't see the lean man with a remarkable mustache walk towards the campus.</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>I still don't know how many chapters I'm going to add to this so we'll just see where the story goes.</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0003"><h2>3. Chasing Fairy Tales</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>Weiss worries about Ruby when they're apart, but in the meantime is sent on a mission with Yang and Blake to learn about Cinder.</p>
          </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Weiss, Yang, and Blake found themselves sitting inside a Remnant Fried Roosters enjoying some fast fried food as they waited for word from Goodwitch. Weiss anxiously bounced her leg up and down. She couldn't stop thinking about Ruby and wondering what might have been going on with her. </p>
<p>Just as she was going to check her scroll to see if Ruby had sent her a message, Yang started choking on the biscuit she shoved had shoved in her mouth. She watched in disgust as she spit up on the table, banging on her chest. Blake softly rubbed her back for a moment until Yang settled down, clearing her throat with a sip of her drink. "How do you stand working with her again?" Weiss asked, sending a glance in Blake's direction.</p>
<p>She watched a blush grow on her face before she spoke. "She has a charm to her. Sometimes. And it's not like I can get rid of her any time soon," she said with a small smile. Yang grabbed her wrist and held up her hand so Weiss could see the ring on her finger.</p>
<p>"We're engaged," Yang said with a smile on her face. Weiss raised an eyebrow at the odd couple. She would have never guessed the two were together. They were practically complete opposites, but she supposed opposites attract. </p>
<p>'Ruby would say something like that,' she thought with a small smile. "Congratulations I suppose. You're lucky she can tolerate you," Weiss told them. </p>
<p>"Thank you Weiss," Blake said as Yang kissed her hand. She rolled her eyes, but turned and gave Yang a kiss when she puckered her lips at her. Weiss watched the two as she ate her chicken sandwich. Their relationship made her long for one of her own. To be able to hold someone, to kiss them and have them by her side through everything. </p>
<p>Her scroll pinged and she picked it up immediately. It was a text from Ruby. 'Got dragged into a lecture somehow. Meet up with you guys after it's done I guess' </p>
<p>Weiss rolled her eyes and sent back, 'Be safe you dolt.' </p>
<p>She blushed bright red as she read her response. 'Awe you care about me &lt;3'</p>
<p>'No', she sent before shutting off her scroll. "Ruby ended up in a lecture," she told the two across from her. At Blake's confused look, she said, "I don't even know so don't even ask me. She's fine and that's what matters. Is there any word about what we got from Emerald?" </p>
<p>Blake shook her head as Yang's scroll pinged. They watched her pull it out and read before a frown made a way onto her face. "We have to head to Atlas apparently. There's a hotel we have to investigate. The Glass Unicorn. It has something to do with Cinder. There are tickets under our names on our scrolls. We leave this afternoon." </p>
<p>"Have you ever heard of that Weiss?" Blake asked, "I know you're from Atlas."</p>
<p>Weiss thought for a moment. "The name sounds familiar. I believe it was an old HUNTRESS hot spot back in the day. If I'm not mistaken the original owners were murdered by a worker." Blake nodded, taking in the information. </p>
<p>"I guess that's why we're starting there," Yang said as she got up with her tray. Weiss and Blake followed in suit, throwing out their garbage before making their way to the car. Yang started the car and started their drive to the airport.</p>
<p>"Are we going to be doing this without Ruby?" Weiss asked. She missed the look Blake sent to Yang.</p>
<p>"I'm sure she will join us in Atlas. If not they will bring us back soon enough," Blake told her with a reassuring smile. Weiss nodded and leaned back in her seat. She eyed Blake's hand as she intertwined it with Yang's. They drove in silence until Yang turned on the radio and sang along to the music.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>While Weiss did not want to spend a three hour flight with Yang, Blake had offered to sit in between the two. She looked out the window and watched the clouds pass by. Her mind drifted to Ruby and what she could be doing. Since they were on a plane she wouldn't get any notifications until after they landed and she wouldn't know if Ruby had tried to contact her. </p>
<p>"Ice queen, what do you want from the cart lady?" Yang asked, leaning over Blake to get in her space. </p>
<p>"I'm good, thank you," she said to both her and the flight attendant. Blake accepted a soda Yang got for her and looked out the window alongside her. </p>
<p>Weiss looked at Blake and asked, "Do you know how Ruby got into HUNTRESS at such a young age?" </p>
<p>"She was talented in the field. Once she found out Yang was working for them she wanted to join and they wanted her. They got her into Beacon early and as soon as she graduated she started right up," Blake said with a smile. "I was one the first person she was partnered with for a mission. She's the one who introduced me to Yang."</p>
<p>"Ruby was my perfect wing woman. Of course when I saw she was being partnered up with you I tried returning the favor," Yang told her with a grin.</p>
<p>Weiss blushed and asked, "Why would you think I'd want to be with Ruby?"</p>
<p>Yang shrugged with a smile. "She seemed like your type. Besides, the second I finished telling her about you, she was already head over heels. You should shoot your shot with her."</p>
<p>"I'd rather shoot myself," she said, turning to look out the window to hide her blush. Blake laughed quietly, her hand landing on Weiss's shoulder. She rolled her eyes and looked back out the window, Atlas coming into view.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Weiss stepped out of the cab and paid the driver. They were given rooms at the Glass Unicorn to stay in as they investigated about Cinder and currently stood outside it. Weiss followed Blake into the hotel and took in its interior. It was grand and while it wasn't bustling with life, the air hummed with energy. The trio walked up to the front desk and Weiss rang the bell. A woman walked up to them and looked at them expectedly.</p>
<p>"Room for Schnee and the Xiao Long's," she said. The woman nodded and handed them keys to their room. Blake placed a hand on her arm and she nodded to her, walking off with Yang as she stayed to talk with the woman.</p>
<p>"I'll head to the bar once I'm done unpacking. You try to talk to any staff and I'll look for the regulars, see if they know anything." Weiss nodded at Yang's instruction, stepping onto the elevator with her. They went separate ways once they got on the floor their rooms were on. Once Weiss was set in her room, she checked her scroll. She had three messages from Ruby and two from her sister.</p>
<p>Opening up Ruby's messages first, she read, 'Hey I got out of the lecture thing but I noticed this guy following me. HQ said to watch him so I'll be undercover at Beacon for a few days. When you get these let me know how things are going :P' </p>
<p>Typing out a quick message, she sent, 'We landed in Atlas and are gathering information on Cinder. Be safe and don't do anything stupid.' </p>
<p>She opened her text from Winter and sighed. 'I know it has been some time since our last communication, but I have just made it back from a mission. If you'd like to catch up I am available to meet tomorrow afternoon.'</p>
<p>'I won't be able to make it. I'm busy working all week and I'm not sure when I will be free again for a while.' She sent the message and shut off her scroll. She glanced into the hallway to see if there were any staff nearby and walked out of the room when she saw no one. Heading to the bar, she made her way to the elevator. When the doors opened for her she saw an old cleaning lady inside. With a small smile she stepped inside and pressed the button for the first floor.</p>
<p>They stood in silence for a moment before Weiss asked, "Do you happen to know about a woman named Cinder? I heard she worked here a while back." The woman narrowed her eyes at her so she smiled kindly at her.</p>
<p>"She worked here a long time ago for the hotel's previous owners. She was the only staff other than the rest of the owners family," the woman told her.</p>
<p>"They were related?" she asked.</p>
<p>The woman shook her head. "No, the owner adopted her so she wouldn't have to pay her to work. Treated her poorly if word around here was true. Had an electric collar around her neck to shock her into place. Eventually the poor girl snapped and killed the whole family. A man was found with them too, but no one was ever sure about who he was to them. Do you work with the police?" she asked.</p>
<p>Weiss shook her head before she answered. "No ma'am, I'm working on a private investigation into her and this is the only known affiliation we have of her. My team and I figured we'd start here for any leads."</p>
<p>"You're a smart girl," the woman said as they stopped on the first floor. Weiss smiled at her kindly  before she walked out into the lobby. Finding her way to the bar, Weiss took a seat next to Yang who was sitting all alone with a drink in hand.</p>
<p>When Yang noticed her walk up she smiled and showed her the drink. "Strawberry sunrise, no ice. Best drink there is."</p>
<p>Weiss rolled her eyes as she took a seat next to her. "Have you found anything yet?" she asked. Yang shook her head as she took a sip of the drink.</p>
<p>"Barkeep was only hired recently and doesn't know anything about the hotel other than the original owners were murdered. What about you, did you find anything?"</p>
<p>Weiss nodded and said, "A cleaning lady told me Cinder was adopted by the owner and worked as the only staff at the hotel. They abused her and then she killed them one day, along with a man who wasn't related to the family. I'm not sure about the fine details, but if I had to guess that's probably how she got involved with GRIMM. Had nowhere to run so she turned to where she could be used."</p>
<p>"The man was a member of HUNTRESS working out of Atlas," Blake said as she took a seat next to Yang. "He saw her being abused and offered to train her in self defense believing he could get her a job if she waited long enough. She ended up using his training to kill her stepsisters and stepmother before killing him after he discovered what she did."</p>
<p>"If that doesn't sound like one messed up fairy tale," Yang said. Weiss nodded in agreement and thought for a moment.</p>
<p>"Does anyone know if she still comes here?" she asked, looking at Blake.</p>
<p>She shook her head and took a sip of Yang's drink. "No. No one has seen her here since the night of the murders." </p>
<p>"Did you get a description of what she looked like?" Yang asked as she opened her hand for Blake to put hers in.</p>
<p>She nodded as she took her hand. "Black hair, amber eyes, pale complexion. I'm not sure how long her hair is or how tall she is, but for now that's all we got." Weiss hummed at all the information.</p>
<p>"It makes sense why she's going for this maiden position then," she said.</p>
<p>"It does?" Yang asked.</p>
<p>She rolled her eyes before explaining, "Cinder had nothing growing up. No freedom, no control, no power. She's trying to prove she's stronger and that no one will ever make her feel weak again by taking power from others. She wants what she never had growing up." Yang just nodded along to what she saw saying.</p>
<p>"Only question now is when is she going to strike? If we can find this Fall Maiden and get to her before Cinder does, we might be able to have her come to our side and tell us what she knows in return for protection. We need to get Emerald talking again," Blake said.</p>
<p>Weiss nodded before asking, "Do you think it's worth it staying in Atlas another day or should we head back?" </p>
<p>Yang stood from the bar and held her hand out for Blake. "They'll let us know in the morning. Until then, let's just enjoy this beautiful place where a family was murdered. Romantic, right?" she asked, wiggling her brows at Blake who swatted at her arm.</p>
<p>"Oh shut up," she told her before turning to Weiss. "We'll be in our room. If you need us just text. Goodnight Weiss."</p>
<p>"Goodnight," she told both of them as they walked off. She turned back to the bar and signaled to the bartender. "One light beer please." He nodded and got her a bottle before heading to where a group of men sat down. She took a swig of it as she dug her scroll out of her pocket. She had no reply from her sister, but there was one from Ruby. </p>
<p>'The only stupid thing I did was leave your side ;)' Weiss smiled as she typed her response.</p>
<p>'That's cute. How long did it take you to come up with that one?'</p>
<p>Ruby's response was immediate. 'Only a minute or so. How are things in Atlas?'</p>
<p>'Going well enough. We got new information about Cinder that might be useful or a complete waste of time. How is it going in Vale?'</p>
<p>'Boring. I miss being with you guys. I miss you. It's going to be so lonely sleeping without you next to me :(' </p>
<p>Weiss scoffed lightly at her. She smiled anyway as she typed out her message. 'Well get used to it. That was a one time deal.'</p>
<p>Weiss was interrupted in her message sending as Ruby said, 'Two time deal, actually.'</p>
<p>She rolled her eyes with a smile on her lips. 'Goodnight Ruby. It's getting late and you should be resting.'</p>
<p>'Goodnight Weiss &lt;3' She read the message a few times before turning off her scroll. Finishing her beer, Weiss put a few Lien on the counter to cover it and went to her room. She had trouble falling asleep that night, the missing warmth of having Ruby next to her keeping her awake.</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0004"><h2>4. Time for Change</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>As the trio heads back to Vale, Weiss gets a message from Ruby that causes her heart to stop.</p>
          </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Weiss groaned as her alarm went off. She didn't manage to go to bed until the middle of the night and it was way too early for her to have to be working again. Turning off her scroll, she grabbed some clothes and made her way to the bathroom so she could set herself up a shower. When she waited for the water to heat up, she checked her messages. She had a text from Winter and several from Ruby. 'I see, good luck with your job,' was Winter's response.</p><p>Weiss sent her a quick thanks before opening Ruby's messages. 'Morning snow angle &lt;3 I just got breakfast and was thinking about you.' Ruby attached an image of her taking a selfie with a cup of coffee and croissant in her mouth. </p><p>Weiss smiled at how cute she was, her heart beating faster as she told her, 'Don't call me that.' Turning her scroll off she got in the shower and let the warm water wash off the stress of the last few days. As she rinsed the shampoo from out of her hair, her mind drifted to Ruby and what Yang had told her on the plane. It's not like Ruby wasn't her type, she was just young and childish and Weiss always saw herself with someone as mature as she was.</p><p>Shutting off the water, she stepped out of the shower and grabbed a towel. She wrapped it around her body and brushed her teeth before dressing. She decided to take the time to blow dry her hair rather than letting it air dry, not wanting to risk getting sick because of the cold Atlas weather. Just as she finished, there was a knock on the door. Weiss walked over to it and looked out the peephole before opening it up.</p><p>Yang and Blake walked in, Yang with a file and Blake with an omelet and juice. "HQ sent over information on Hazel, Tyrian, and Watts," Yang told her as Blake handed her the meal with a small smile. "We figured we'd look over it together." Weiss nodded as Yang pulled pieces of paper out of the file. Taking a bite of her food, she walked over to where Yang was sitting on her bed and took a seat across from her in a chair.</p><p>Blake took one of the papers Yang handed to her and read. "Hazel Rainheart, known associate of GRIMM. He's been arrested several times for killing men who he believed responsible for the death of his sister Gretchen Rainheart. Gretchen was a member of HUNTRESS and it is believed that after her death he joined GRIMM to avenge her. All of the men killed were a part of HUNTRESS." Blake handed Weiss the paper so she could look over the image they were provided of him.</p><p>Weiss glanced over it as she took a sip of juice. "You would think they would keep a man like this under lock and key," she commented. Yang and Blake both nodded at her.</p><p>"He escaped from jail twice but other than that I think he was just bailed out and never returned for any trials," Yang said. Weiss nodded and looked to Blake as she took the next set of papers from Yang.</p><p>"Tyrian Callows, known serial killer and GRIMM operative who is highly unstable, disturbed, maladjusted, manipulative, and a sadist. He has a flare for being dramatic, often overkilling each of his victims although his favorite method of killing involves scorpion venom. He enjoys hurting himself and others, taking pleasure from the pain. The tiniest thing can set him off into an uncontrollable fit of rage and can feel paranoid if someone glances at him the wrong way. He is highly manipulative and insightful. Great caution should be taken around this individual."</p><p>Weiss accepted the paper from Blake and shuddered as she saw the photo. It was the same man who put the tracker on her back at the club. The thought of him still being in Vale with Ruby put her on edge. </p><p>Blake took the last papers from Yang and read aloud. "Doctor Arthur Watts, disgraced scientist from Atlas believed to be dead after faking his death. He was brought into GRIMM around that time period and has since then worked as a hacker, programmer, biomechanical engineer, and other jobs involving technology. It is unknown if he has ever killed anyone and has never been arrested." </p><p>As Weiss looked over the image of Watts, something in her stomach felt off. She pushed away the remainder of her food and took out her scroll. "So we have a man who murders for revenge, a serial killer, a man scientist, and an abused little girl," Yang deducted, leaning back on Weiss's bed. </p><p>"Besides the serial killer, they all have something in common," Blake said. </p><p>Weiss opened up her messages with Ruby from that morning. "And what's that?" Yang asked.</p><p>"They all could be manipulated with the prospect of getting something else in return," Blake said. "For Cinder it's power, for Hazel it's revenge, for Watts it's recognition. Whoever is in charge of them knows this and is obviously using it to their advantage." Weiss felt her heart stop as she looked in the corner of the photo Ruby had sent her. A man with a mustache was sitting at a table with a woman with black hair and amber eyes. Blake must have noticed any color drain from her sin because she asked, "Weiss? Is everything okay?"</p><p>She shook her head and stood up, handing her scroll to Blake. "Ruby's in danger," she said. Watts and who she assumed to be Cinder were watching Ruby as she had taken that picture. </p><p>Blake showed Yang the scroll and she immediately stood up. Taking her own scroll out she dialed for someone. "Goodwitch, we have a problem," she said into the speaker. "Ruby is in danger. This morning she sent Weiss a picture of her in some café near Beacon and in the picture, Watts and Cinder were there watching her." Yang was quiet as she listened to what Goodwitch was saying on the other side. </p><p>Weiss felt Blake at her side and looked at the girl worriedly. A hand was placed on her shoulder, but at that moment she did not feel reassured. They watched Yang hang up the phone. "What did she say?" Weiss asked.</p><p>Yang turned to them and said, "Ruby has been out of contact for an hour, right after she sent you that picture. They're sending a team after her as we speak and a private plane to get us back to Vale. We need to leave right now." Weiss had never seen Yang look so serious before and only nodded. She packed up the very few things she had in her room. Her mind was racing a mile a minute and she was beyond worrying.</p><p>As they checked out of the hotel, Weiss couldn't help but feel as if she should have never let Ruby leave alone.</p><p> </p><p>Their flight was spent in silence. No one made any jokes or called anyone any names. Weiss couldn't stop her leg from bouncing up and down as she thought of what might be going on in Vale. There was still about an hour left of their flight and any update on the situation would not come through until after they landed.</p><p>She glanced over at Yang who was pacing through the aisle, Blake at her side trying to calm her down. "Ruby is a smart girl Yang. I'm sure she's fine. Any trouble she might come across, she can handle." Yang frowned before hugging Blake tightly. </p><p>"I know, it's just. She's my baby sister. I don't know what I'd do if something happened to her because I wasn't there to protect her." Weiss looked away from the couple and back at her hands. Her leg was starting to cramp, but she couldn't manage to stop it.</p><p>'Ruby is going to be fine,' she told herself in her head. 'She was top of her class, highly trained and skilled. Nothing bad is going to happen to her.' Weiss's own pep talk didn't manage to cheer her up. Everyone they were investigating just happened to be in Vale at the same time. Ruby might have been able to take on one or two of these people by herself, but if the whole group showed up, Weiss wasn't sure if she could handle it.</p><p>Weiss stared out the window as Vale came into view, dread filling her stomach.</p><p> </p><p>The second they landed there was a car waiting for them. They got in and were brought back to headquarters as fast as traffic would allow. Rather than the whole garage wall opening up, they were brought through a smaller side door. Weiss noticed the slight panic in the air as people were making calls and dropping off files at a rushed pace. Goodwitch saw them and motioned for them to follow her.</p><p>"We have no word from Miss Rose yet, but our team has found leads as to where she might have gone," she told them as they walked. "There is an abandoned communications tower near Beacon. If they have her, that's probably where they're holding her. We've sent a relay team to try and retrieve Miss Rose, but they will need back up." They stopped outside a metal door that Goodwitch opened with a code. "Take whatever you would like and then head out. We believe we have to upper hand at the moment and we don't want to lose it."</p><p>Weiss, Yang, and Blake stepped into the armory and nodded. Weiss picked a simple handgun and daggers, grabbing extra ammo. Blake chose two dueling handguns and a large knife to bring with her. Yang first went to grab a grenade launcher, but after a glare from Blake, picked up a shotgun. She also took an sniper rifle before they left.</p><p>"We should have medical waiting in case someone gets injured," Weiss told Goodwitch as they walked through the halls. The older woman just nodded at her and walked off into a different hallway where she started instructing someone to set up a medical area. </p><p>Blake came up to her and put a hand on her shoulder and gave her a small smile. "Ruby will be okay, Weiss. She's smart and skilled in the field." </p><p>"I sure hope so. All I've ever seen is her being a dunce," Weiss said as they walked out of headquarters. Yang was already waiting for them in the car. They got in the back seat together and she started the dove to the abandoned tower.</p><p> </p><p>The second they got there, Weiss could immediately tell something was wrong. It was completely silent and the tower looked daunting. As she looked up, she struggled to look through the windows. The relay team's car was empty and the tires popped. The ground was covered in shell casings. A glance at Blake told her that they were going to have to be stealthy. They quietly got out of the car, slowly working their way closer to the tower. </p><p>As they found themselves near the base of the tower, Blake held out her hand for them to stop. She sniffed the air for a moment before turning and whispering, "Blood." Just then, voices could be heard coming towards them. Ducking behind a nearby shrub, the trio waited in tense silence.</p><p>"Has the kid said anything yet?" A deep voice asked. Weiss pulled her gun out of the holster.</p><p>"No. Cinder can barely keep her in restraints let alone get her to talk. I say we're wasting our time here. Salem has better things to be doing than waste her time allowing Cinder to go on a rampage. I say once Tyrian gets here we leave. I'm not going to go down for killing those men." This man sounded calculated and cunning. </p><p>Weiss sent Blake a look that asked, what do we do? She watched Blake look around before pointing behind them. Weiss and Yang looked over their shoulders to see a pile of HUNTRESS members lying dead on the ground. Weiss struggled to hold in a gasp and watched Yang shut her eyes hard. </p><p>"My, my, my. Are we leaving all ready? Our dear Cinder will be so sad." This man started laughing maniacally. Weiss held her breath. </p><p>"Yes Tyrian, we're leaving. Cinder is out of her mind and I'm not going to help her chase her dreams of becoming a maiden. Salem has better uses for me. Let's go Hazel." Weiss assumed the man speaking was Watts. The girls waited in silence for a few moments as they listened to them walk away. Blake peeked her head around the corner and nodded her head, showing they were in the clear.</p><p>Moving silently, the three made their way closer to the tower. Weiss felt her heart pound in her chest as she opened the door to the tower. The entryway was clear, but Weiss could see the half eaten croissant Ruby had in her picture on the floor. Her breath got caught in her throat and her eyes frantically searched the room for more signs of Ruby. </p><p>"All clear," Yang said after searching the first floor. Weiss nodded and started up the stairs of the abandoned building. The tower reminded her of a lighthouse as she walked up the flight of stairs. As they made their way higher up the staircase Weiss could hear the sound of thuds. Her mood turned sour as she heard the sound of groaning.</p><p>"How did you know about them, Little Red? I'm growing impatient," a woman's voice said. Weiss slowed down and motioned to Blake and Yang to be quiet as they made their way up the final stairs. They nodded and Weiss led the way up to the door. She looked through the window placed on the door and saw Ruby sitting with her head hung low. A woman, Cinder, she guessed was standing in front of her with one hand on her hip and the other on the top of the chair Ruby was tied to.</p><p>Ruby just kept her head down at the woman's question, ignoring her. The woman just growled at her and kicked the leg of the chair. She was about to bring her back hand down on Ruby's face when her scroll pinged. She looked between Ruby and her scroll before scowling and walking away.</p><p>Weiss waited for a moment. She couldn't tell if Cinder was still nearby, but didn't want to leave Ruby without any help. "Let's go," she whispered to Blake and Yang over her shoulder. She opened the door and ushered the couple inside, following quickly behind them. Yang rushed to Ruby where she untied her quickly before pulling her into a hug. </p><p>"All clear," Blake said after looking around. She rushed over to Ruby and Yang to see how she was doing. Weiss looked around uncertainly. She didn't feel safe as she looked around the room. She turned to look at Ruby who was rubbing her wrist as she stood up. </p><p>They made eye contact across the room and although Weiss could tell Ruby was in pain, she smiled at her anyway, her silver eyes shining with happiness. Weiss smiled back at her and rushed up to her, pulling her into a hug. "Are you okay?" she asked her. Weiss felt Ruby nod against her.</p><p>"Yeah, I'm alright Weiss," Ruby said with a small smile. Weiss pulled back to look at her face and brought her hand up to caress Ruby's face. Suddenly a shot rang out and Weiss barely managed to get down as Ruby pulled her down to the floor. She looked behind her from her spot on the floor and saw Cinder standing with a gun pointed at them.</p><p>Blake started firing both of her guns at her as she covered Ruby and Weiss. Cinder took cover behind a wall. Yang passed Ruby the rifle she brought as Weiss ushered them into the stairwell. "Blake," she called out, trying to get her to follow them. Ruby and Yang were already halfway down the stairs when Blake screamed out. Weiss and Yang made eye contact and she said, "Go, I've got her."</p><p>Yang nodded and smiled at her before running back up the stairs. Weiss took her place at Ruby's side and led her down to safety. "You came," Ruby said with a smile. Weiss rolled her eyes, grabbing her hand while placing her hand on her back.</p><p>"Of course I came," she told her. Weiss smiled at her, but stopped when she heard a battle cry come from Yang. A shot rang out followed by clattering. Weiss and Ruby made their way outside and she led her to the car. </p><p>"We need to go back for them," Ruby said, already trying to make her way back to the tower.</p><p>Weiss shook her head, "We need to call back up." She dragged her to the car and tore open the door. She reached for the radio in the center console. "Snowflake to HUNTRESS we need backup. Operative Sunny Dragon and Kitty Cat are down and the relay team are all deceased. I have Rose with me and we need medical attention. Over."</p><p>Weiss looked over her shoulder to see Ruby looking through the scope of her rifle. She glanced up at where she was aiming and saw Cinder standing with her back to the window. She didn't get a chance to say Ruby's name before Cinder turned around and a shot rang out. Weiss saw the glass of the window shatter, covering Cinder's body as they both fell. </p><p>Weiss looked between both Ruby and the tower. Her brain was telling her to wait for backup, but she knew Yang and Blake needed help and there was a high probability Cinder was dead. Turning to Ruby, she grabbed her by the shoulders and said, "Stay here and wait for backup. I'll check on Blake and Yang." She didn't wait to hear what Ruby was going to say before she turned and ran back to the tower.</p><p>By the time she reached the top of the staircase, she was thoroughly exhausted. With her remaining energy, she pulled out her gun and walked into the room. Her eyes landed on Blake as the girl lay writhing in pain, a bullet hole through her hip. As her eyes landed on her, she said, "Yang." Weiss looked around the room and saw her lying on the floor, her arm severed from her body.</p><p>She quickly took in the rest of their surroundings, checking around the corner where she saw Cinder's body lying there. As she got closer to her body, she kept her gun pointed at her the whole time. She peered over her shoulder and saw a bullet hole through her left eye. </p><p>Weiss swallowed the bile she felt rising in her throat before heading back to Yang and Blake. Putting her gun away, she shrugged off the coat she was wearing and tore off stripes of the fabric. She gently grabbed what was left of Yang's right arm and began to wrap it in hopes of stopping any further blood from leaving her body. </p><p>Once she was satisfied with her work, she turned to Blake who was clutching her side. Weiss took what remained of her jacket and used it to apply pressure to her wound. "You guys are going to be okay. I called for back up already and they're on their way." Blake managed to give her a pained smile before wincing. Weiss wasn't sure how long they waited for help, but all she remembered by the time Yang and Blake were safely brought to headquarters was that she was covered in blood.</p><p>A sheet was laid over Cinder as everyone focused on the more important task of saving lives. No one noticed she was gone until a team went back to retrieve her body and found nothing but blood.</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0005"><h2>5. Taking up Roots</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>Weiss watches over a certain Rose and helps her get back on her feet as they prepare for an upcoming mission.</p>
          </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Weiss watched over Ruby as she slept peacefully. HUNTRESS had several rooms in headquarters renovated to serve as a mini hospital so any person injured severely could be treated with the proper equipment. While Ruby wasn't critically injured, they allowed her to stay in one of the rooms so she could be close to her sister as she recovered. </p><p>From what Weiss was told, Ruby was found unconscious when other agents got to her. She wasn't sure what had happened, but was glad Ruby didn't have an opportunity to do something stupid that might have got her hurt worse by trying to be heroic. </p><p>After Weiss had explained what happened, she had been brought into Ozpin's office where she told him everything she had learned from the past few days. She told him about Cinder and what they learned at the Glass Unicorn, about noticing Watts and Cinder in the picture Ruby had sent to her, about the Salem woman they had mentioned, and about Ruby shooting Cinder in the eye. He had just nodded at her and told her with a smile that she was free to go and that there would be a fresh pair of clothes waiting for her.</p><p>Ruby had started to drool on her pillow and Weiss rolled her eyes as she grabbed a tissue to wipe her mouth with. She softly wiped away the spit, not wanting to disturb her as she rested. Weiss would have blushed at being this close to Ruby's lips, but the drool ruined the mood. </p><p>She let her hand cup Ruby's face gently and rub her thumb over her cheek. A sudden urge to kiss her forehead overcame her and she pulled away, a blush on her face. Looking around she saw no one nearby and sat down, trying to act dignified. </p><p>A breaking news story came up on the tv playing idly in the background caught Weiss's attention. Turning up the volume, she listened to the reporters and watched as the face of a young woman came up on the screen. "A young woman named by police as Amber has been found dead in the streets of Vale. Authorities can not say much about the woman's death other than they suspect it to be foul play. Details about the crime are being discovered as we speak."</p><p>Weiss drowned out the rest of what was being said as her scroll pinged. Glynda, she had found out her first name, had sent her a picture of the woman from the news. 'The Fall Maiden.' she had written. Weiss gasped as she looked back up at the tv. She knew this meant that Cinder was still alive and that she had gotten what she wanted. </p><p>She clutched the cloth of Ruby's bed sheets as her hands tried to curl up into fists. They could have saved someone's life, good of bad, and they had failed. A hand on hers caused her to look up. Ruby was smiling at her as she did every time she woke up and Weiss was there. "What's wrong?" she asked, her head tilting as she spoke.</p><p>Weiss sighed. "The Fall Maiden was murdered. Cinder is probably enjoying her new title now and we have no clue what they're planning." Ruby nodded and thought for a moment as she took in her words. </p><p>"At least we still have Emerald and Mercury in custody. It wouldn't hurt to try and get more out of them," she suggested. Weiss nodded, but doubted it would do much. There was a small chance they would know what Cinder had planned on doing after becoming the Fall Maiden. "Hey, Weiss?" Ruby asked.</p><p>She looked into her eyes and waited for her to speak. "What is it?" she asked after Ruby only started at her.</p><p>"Can you do something for me?" she asked, wincing as she moved her arm into a more comfortable position.</p><p>She nodded. "What do you need?" </p><p>"Can you smile? You always look so beautiful when you do." Weiss blushed and rolled her eyes until she realized that Ruby was being earnest. She stared at her with hopeful eyes and Weiss couldn't help but smile sincerely.</p><p>"You dunce. If you weren't hurt I'd hurt you for saying that," she told her, the smile remaining on her lips. </p><p>Ruby just grinned at her. "I know. I know a lot of things," she insisted.</p><p>"Like what?" Weiss asked with a raised brow. </p><p>Ruby held her hand with both of hers and stared at them as she spoke. "I knew you'd be smart enough to realize I was in trouble and come save me. I knew I could count on you." Weiss blushed at the intense eye contact she made with her and felt her heart stop.</p><p>Her mouth hung open as she struggled to come up with a retort. Ruby giggled at her and Weiss couldn't help but smile at her. She joined in laughing at herself for a moment before they both calmed down. "Can I get you anything?" she asked.</p><p>Ruby shook her head. "Just stay with me." Weiss nodded and remained in her seat, holding Ruby's hand as she drifted off to sleep again.</p><p> </p><p>Ruby got better very fast, claiming to only be a little sore and ready for action. Weiss never questioned her and instead helped her train to get back into physical shape. They practiced hand to hand combat and shooting drills. On the days they fought hand to hand, Weiss would often find herself on her back with a panting Ruby on top of her.</p><p>Today was one of those days and Weiss groaned as Ruby slammed her onto the mat. She was smiling down at her as she hovered over her and Weiss rolled her eyes before accepting her outstretched hand. Ruby pulled her to her feet and they separated, holding up her fists. Weiss mirrored her and did her best to stay agile as she moved around.</p><p>They watched each other for a moment before Ruby launched at her. Weiss did her best to dodge her attack and moved to the side as Ruby tried to land a hit on her again. She moved back and away as Ruby tried her best to catch her. When Weiss saw her overstep, she took the chance and stuck out her foot in hopes Ruby would trip and fall. As her shin made contact with her ankle, Ruby managed to grab her arm and push Weiss off balance as she fell down. </p><p>The wind was knocked out of her as Ruby fell on her after she hit the mat. The feeling of her hot breath on her sweaty neck as she panted turned Weiss on faster than she was willing to admit. She was sure her whole face was red as she tried and failed to push Ruby off of her. "Get off me," she told her although her voice wavered as she spoke.</p><p>Ruby lifted herself off of her, her arms framing her head and her knees pressed against Weiss's thighs. Instead of getting off of her, Ruby stayed hovering over Weiss, staring down at her with a light blush on her own face. Weiss felt her heart hammer in her chest as her gaze switched between Ruby's eyes and her lips. "Careful sis! Ice melts if it gets too hot," Yang's voice rang through the training room.</p><p>Weiss blushed even harder and forced herself to look away from Ruby as she got off her. She took the hand she offered her and got to her feet. She glanced over at Yang who was walking towards them with Blake. "We were just going to visit you when we were done," Ruby said. </p><p>Yang pulled Ruby into a headlock and said, "We figured we'd surprise you. I'm glad we did too. I don't think the ice queen could have handled another second of how you were looking at her. Good work, my lessons have been working."</p><p>Weiss rolled her eyes and scoffed, a blush still lingering on her face. "I'm glad you're feeling better," she said before walking to the bench she had left her water bottle on. She took a long sip of it and watched in confusion as the grin on Yang's face grew. With her stub arm she pointed at Weiss and Ruby followed her point.</p><p>"See how thirsty you made her?" she asked, wiggling her eyebrows. Weiss immediately started choking on her drink and started coughing in an attempt to clear her airways. </p><p>"Yang," Blake scolded as she walked over to Weiss and rubbed her back. "Stop teasing her. You act like you weren't this bad when we first got together."</p><p>Yang walked over to them, Ruby following behind her. Hugging Blake, she said, "But it's fun. Besides I was much smoother back then." The two shared a brief kiss and Weiss just rolled her eyes.</p><p>"When are you getting your new arm?" Ruby asked curiously.</p><p>Yang turned to her, her good arm still wrapped around Blake's waist. "It should get here next week or something. It's some of the best tech from Atlas so I guess it should be worth the wait."</p><p>Weiss nodded. "If it's from Atlas it's going to be top of the notch technology. I know the general of the Atlas military, James Ironwood has a prosthetic arm that functions even better than a real one."</p><p>"Do you think I have time to ask them to put a gun in it?" Yang asked. Both Blake and Weiss looked at her with deadpan expressions while Ruby looked equally as curious. </p><p>"For safety reasons, you are not allowed to ask for that," Blake told her. Yang shrugged her shoulders as Ruby frowned. Weiss rolled her eyes and took a seat, Ruby following in suit. "Have you two heard anything about GRIMM recently? I've heard about an increase of attacks on HUNTRESS agents in Mistral, but I don't know if that has to do with Cinder."</p><p>Weiss shook her head as she explained. "Ever since our little conflict with her, Ozpin and Goodwitch have been focused more on finding out who Salem is rather than trying to find out what Cinder is up to. We don't know how high up this woman is if Tyrian, Watts, and Hazel all consider her their superior." The group of girls around her nodded as they thought.</p><p>"Do you think they would send us to Mistral if we asked? There's nothing for us to do here and we'd be of more use to them in the field than just lying low," Ruby said. </p><p>"Only if you had a totally awesome chaperone," a husky voice said. Weiss turned to the entryway of the training room to see a man with red eyes and a light stubble grinning, a flask in hand. </p><p>"Uncle Qrow!" Ruby cried as she rushed up to the man. They embraced for a moment until Ruby pulled back and asked, "Did you miss me?"</p><p>Weiss's eyebrows shot up as the man easily smiled at her and said, "Nope." They hugged again before he walked over the Yang and embraced her. "Hey firecracker," he said to her, rubbing her head. Looking at Blake, he smiled and went up to her next. As they hugged, he asked Yang, "You're still marrying the emo one right?"</p><p>Yang smiled and laughed. "That's the plan," she told him. Blake herself chuckled as they pulled apart. Qrow then turned to Weiss and looked her over.</p><p>"A Schnee," he said, almost astonished. </p><p>"Ruby's new girlfriend," Yang told him. </p><p>Blushing, Weiss said, "I am not, her girlfriend. I'm Weiss Schnee, it's a pleasure to meet you Qrow." She stood up to shake his hand.</p><p>"I've worked with your sister before," he told her as they shook hands. "What an ice queen." Yang perked up at the name, grinning wildly as Weiss frowned. </p><p>Before she could ask about her sister, Ruby asked, "Does this mean you're going to bring us to Mistral? Is this a family, and Weiss, mission?" </p><p>Weiss found herself saying, "Hey!" in an offended tone as Qrow answered.</p><p>"Yup. Once Yang get's her new arm, they're sending you four out there to see what's up. And not that they're under estimating your abilities or anything, but I'll be joining you to make sure you don't do anything stupid. I know some of the agents in the area anyway, so I can help us get an inside look as to what's been going on." He finished his sentence by taking a swig from his flask, placing it in his jacket pocket after he was done.</p><p>"Do you know when we will be leaving?" Blake asked. He shrugged as he walked out of the room, leaving the girls behind. </p><p>"This will be fun," Weiss commented as she walked out after him. Ruby followed her with a smile, their hands brushing together as they walked.</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0006"><h2>6. The Coward and the Crow</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>The team goes to Mistral and are surprised by what they find.</p>
          </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Mistral was not fun. Between Qrow instigating Yang and Ruby and all the missing HUNTRESS agents, all Weiss could think about was her headache. One day as they walked to the nearby Haven University, Weiss observed Qrow taking a drink from his flask before betting his nieces he could beat them in a run to the university.</p>
<p>As they sprinted off, Weiss walked up to Blake and said, "I don't understand why they decided he was the best one to lead this mission. All he does is drink and cause Ruby and Yang to goof off." </p>
<p>Blake laughed as Ruby ended up tripping but got right back up and started to run again. She looked at Weiss with a smile and said, "They're family and he was probably concerned for them. If their father was still working for HUNTRESS I'm sure he'd be on this mission with us instead. And trust me, you'd prefer Qrow over Tai's puns."</p>
<p>Weiss rolled her eyes as they walked up the stairs of Haven University. Ruby, Yang, and Qrow were waiting for them outside. "Okay listen up," he told the group. "Leo is an old friend of mine, I've worked with him before. We go in, ask our questions, get our answers, and then we head back. No one brought any weapons did they?" Everyone shook their heads and he continued. "Good. Follow my lead then." </p>
<p>He opened the doors to the university and walked inside. The girls followed after him as he made his way to the headmaster's office. He knocked on the door once and when there was no response, pushed the door open slowly. He stuck his head in the door and Weiss waited in anticipation. He motioned with his hand for them to follow him and walked into the office.</p>
<p>"Qrow? I didn't think you'd be coming until after the school day was over," a man with dark skin and a full beard said as they walked in. Weiss noted the surprise as he spoke and glanced at Blake who made eye contact with her and nodded once.</p>
<p>Qrow shrugged as he walked over to the man's desk and sat down, propping his feet up on the table before taking a drink from his flask. "We figured we'd drop by early for you so you won't have to stress about work after work," he explained with nonchalance. Weiss watched him take a look around the room as he put his flask away and did the same. She didn't see anything of interest and apparently neither did Qrow. "Have you heard about what's been happening to nearby HUNTRESS agents?" he asked.</p>
<p>The man first shook his head before nodding. "I've, I've heard, um I've heard a little about it. But Qrow I don't think this is an appropriate time to talk. Come back tonigh- come back tomorrow night and we can discuss it. I have students to be taking care of and work to be doing. If you will see yourselves out," he said, picking up some papers and taking out a pen.</p>
<p>Qrow seemed to understand that they were not welcome and stood. He turned to look at the girls and said, "Let's go." They walked out in silence, everyone sharing looks of unease.  Ruby made her way to her side as they walked into the Grand Hallway.</p>
<p>"I'm not the only one who saw how weird that was, right?" Weiss asked as they all stopped. </p>
<p>"No, I saw it too kiddo. Leo has always been a nervous man, but never this nervous. Something is up and until we talk to Oz, we're not going back there," Qrow told them. He walked out of the building and Weiss shared a look of concern with Ruby before they followed him. </p>
<p>Weiss tried to think about why he would be so nervous. From what she read about Lionheart he had been an informant for HUNTRESS since he first became headmaster at Haven. He was described as polite and joyful even, the person who had written the report about him saying he was even compassionate. Weiss did not see that in the man they had met.</p>
<p>"Hey, is everything all right?" Ruby asked, grabbing her hand. Weiss looked back at the university with a frown.</p>
<p>"I just don't understand what's going on. I feel like something's wrong, but I just, I don't know what," she admitted with a sigh. </p>
<p>Ruby squeezed her hand and said, "Whatever it is we'll get to the bottom of it. Together." She smiled at her in a way that was so sincere, Weiss felt herself blushing. A hand was placed on her back and she turned to see Blake standing beside her with a smile. Yang was holding her hand and had a grin on her face.</p>
<p>"Everything will be fine snowflake. You worry too much," she told her. Weiss rolled her eyes and smiled at her friends.</p>
<p>"Are you kids coming?" Qrow called after them. The girls followed him through the quad, blissfully ignorant of the man with a mustache who watched them from Lionheart's office.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Weiss was reading about the murder of the previous Fall Maiden on the couch of the house they were staying in. With one hand she held her scroll and with the other, she ran her fingers through Ruby's hair, scratching lightly at her scalp. She had laid her head in her lap when she had first sat down and Weiss was content with not moving. </p>
<p>'Police have ruled the cause of death homicide, a single bullet hole found through the woman's chest. There have been no suspects named as police run into a dead end. The question everyone is asking themselves is why would anyone want this woman dead?' Weiss sighed as she put her scroll back in her pocket. She wondered what to do with her now empty hand as she looked down at Ruby who was playing games on her scroll. Deciding to not overthink it, she laid her arm on Ruby's stomach. She saw her eyes glance up at her before returning to her game.</p>
<p>Weiss smiled and messed up Ruby's hair as her fingers grew tired. She left her hand on her head as she looked over at Blake who was cleaning her guns in preparation for tonight. Ozpin had agreed with them that something was up when they told him about Lionheart, but said they should go see him regardless. Qrow had made sure they were prepared, having them clean their weapons, fill extra magazines, and stretch.</p>
<p>Yang insisted they eat before leaving and was currently in the kitchen making some tea and soup. Weiss wasn't sure where Qrow was, but if she had to take a guess, he was probably drinking in his room. "Can you keep doing that please?" Ruby asked, her eyes never leaving her screen. Weiss rolled her eyes, but started to run her fingers through her hair again anyway. </p>
<p>She started humming as she leaned her head back and closed her eyes. Part of her felt like singing, but refrained herself from doing so, not in the mood to deal with Yang making fun of her. "I didn't know if Uncle Qrow was gonna join us or not, not I made an extra bowl just in case," Yang said as she walked into the room with a tray of food.</p>
<p>Opening her eyes at the loss of weight on her lap, Weiss saw Ruby excitedly sit up. She smiled softly as she watched her grab the closest bowl and use it to warm her hands. Weiss accepted a cup of tea Blake handed her, taking a sip before picking her own bowl of soup. They ate together in comfortable silence until there was a knock on the door. They stared at each other in confusion and Weiss asked, "Could that be Qrow?" </p>
<p>Ruby shook her head as she got up. "No, he's upstairs," she said. Walking to the door, she grabbed one of Blake's guns she left in it's holster. She opened the front door a crack, gun between her and the door. She peeked out and immediately broke into a grin. "Jaune!" she said as she pulled open the door.</p>
<p>Weiss watched as a scraggly blonde man, a short haired redhead, and a man who had dark hair with a pink highlight walk into the house. "Ruby!" he said with a smile as he swept her into a hug. Weiss felt herself get jealous at the contact and forced herself to look away. She took one last sip of her tea before getting up alongside Blake and Yang to greet the new people.</p>
<p>Ruby turned to her with a smile, her hand still on the man's arm. "Weiss, this is Jaune, Nora, and Ren. We went to Beacon together," she told her. </p>
<p>Weiss nodded and stuck out her hand to Jaune. "It's nice to meet you Jaune," she said as they shook hands.</p>
<p>"And you. You guys are legends now after taking down Cinder," he said. Weiss noticed how he held her hand after they had stopped shaking and internally groaned. </p>
<p>Luckily for her, Ren walked up to her and stuck his hand out. "It's an honor to be working with you all." </p>
<p>"Ozpin told us you might need some help, so we're back up," Nora said as she propped her elbow on Ren's shoulder. </p>
<p>Ruby ushered them into the house, shutting the door behind them. "I wish I made more to eat than," Yang said with a frown. </p>
<p>"It's fine. We can share," Nora said as she reached for Weiss's bowl. She slapped her hand away and rolled her eyes as the girl pouted. </p>
<p>"Thanks, but we ate on the way here," Jaune said as he took a seat on the middle of the couch. Weiss sighed as Ruby sat on his one side and she was forced to sit on his other. He smiled at her and she gave him a meek smile before going back to eating her soup. </p>
<p>"Tea anyone?" Blake asked. </p>
<p>"Yes please," Ren said. She nodded and walked into the kitchen where Yang had left the kettle. They sat in awkward silence for a while until Qrow walked into the room.</p>
<p>"More kids?" He asked. As het got further into the room, he pointed at Jaune. "Wait, I know you. Yang and Ruby call you vomit boy. Didn't you throw up of her or something?" </p>
<p>Weiss saw him blush and rub the back of his neck. "Yeah, something like that," he said, clearly embarrassed. Everyone started laughing at the memory besides Weiss and Ren. Blake appeared from the kitchen and handed Ren a cup of tea. He thanked her for it and she sat down. </p>
<p>Qrow surveyed them all before asking, "Where's the amazon one?" The new group of three all seemed to grow deadly silent. </p>
<p>Jaune cleared his throat and looked down at his hands as he spoke. "She's um, gone. Ozpin had her working undercover and she grew close to the previous Fall Maiden. Cinder, she... she killed her when she tried taking her down." The room grew somber at his story. Weiss noticed Ruby place a hand on his and smiled softly at him. The tears in his eyes disappeared and he smiled back at her. "When Ozpin told us about the job we took it immediately. If this has something to do with her, we want to help take her down." </p>
<p>"That's very noble of you," Blake said, smiling kindly. The room remained tender after that and Weiss hoped that she would have an excuse to leave.</p>
<p>Qrow gave her one when he said, "All right enough chitter chatter. We have a job to do. We'll leave for Haven first and ten minutes after us, you guys leave. We don't want anyone to know about you guys unless we have to get you involved. Don't come inside until after you hear at least one shot fired." He looked at everyone's nodding heads. "Let's go."</p>
<p> </p>
<p>As they began their walk to Haven University, Weiss pulled Ruby behind the rest of the group. "Who was the girl Jaune was talking about?" she asked her in a hushed voice.</p>
<p>Ruby looked down at the ground with a small sigh. "He was talking about Pyrrha."</p>
<p>"Pyrrha Nikos?" she asked, not only astonished, but doubting she heard her correct.</p>
<p>Ruby just nodded. "I think you went to Beacon with her before transferring to Atlas. Well she stayed at Beacon and was the TA in one of our classes. We all became friends and eventually her and Jaune started dating. They, they had only been married for a year." Weiss gasped softly, her hand landing on Ruby's shoulder. </p>
<p>"That's terrible," she said. </p>
<p>Ruby nodded quietly for a moment before speaking again. "They offered him a break from HUNTRESS or even full on retirement from the organization, but he said no. He does this for her." Weiss felt sad knowing that her first friend from Beacon had passed. She felt even worse imagining how those closer to her must have been feeling.</p>
<p>"Blake was right. He is very noble," she said with a small smile. Ruby nodded at her and grabbed her hand to give it a squeeze. Weiss frowned at the frown that Ruby had on her face. She wasn't used to her being upset. Even when she was recovering she always seemed to have a smile on her face. Wanting to see her smile, Weiss braced herself for her reaction before leaning in and giving Ruby a kiss on the cheek.</p>
<p>Weiss blushed as she pulled away and kept her gaze on the floor. "I saw that!" Yang yelled, making her blush harder. She heard Blake smack her somewhere as she laughed. Weiss barely managed to look up at Ruby before having to look back at the floor. She was blushing lightly and was staring at her with an open mouth and shining silver eyes. </p>
<p>"Don't look at me like that," she said while storming off.</p>
<p>Ruby followed after her saying, "Wait, wait. I'm sorry. Weiss!"</p>
<p> </p>
<p>They all settled down as they reached Haven University. The air was silent and tense. "Is it just me or does something feel, off?" Blake asked. </p>
<p>Qrow nodded, patting the gun he had behind his back. "Keep your eyes open," he told them. Entering the Great Hall, Weiss felt herself tense up at the creaking of the door. Leo Lionheart was waiting for them at the top of the stairs. "Leo," Qrow called out. "Are you ready to talk now?" The man nodded nervously.</p>
<p>"You came armed, I see," he said as they walked into the hall, shutting the doors.</p>
<p>"Better safe than sorry. You know, with all the missing agents that work out of Mistral." Qrow paused for a moment as he stared down the headmaster. "You wouldn't happen to know anything about them would you Leo?" </p>
<p>Weiss turned, pulling out her gun in the process as a crazed voice from behind her said, "No, but we do." From the shadows walked out Tyrian, a needle in hand and automatic rifle strapped to his back. Weiss heard and grunt and looked over her shoulder to see Hazel with nothing but brass knuckles on his hands.</p>
<p>"You didn't think I'd let you off so easily now did you, little red?" Weiss turned to see Cinder standing besides Lionheart with a knife to his neck. The left side of her face was covered with a black cloth, presumably to hide the sight of her missing eye. At this point everyone had their weapons pointed at someone else. </p>
<p>"Let him go," Ruby said, her sniper pointing at Cinder's head. "Or do I have to take out your other eye first?" The woman seemed to falter, taking a step back so her body would be covered more by Lionheart's. The knife came closer to his throat as she did.</p>
<p>"I can take out your eye for you child," Tyrian offered, stalking around the group. Weiss raised her gun level with his head and he only laughed. </p>
<p>"Why don't you tell us why you're here," Yang said as she loaded her shotgun.</p>
<p>"Why don't I just kill you all instead? Boys," Cinder said. Hazel and Tyrian started to move in on the group. Qrow fired a warning shot at Tyrian's feet as he made his way closer to Ruby. He jumped into the air before laughing as he landed on his feet.</p>
<p>Jaune, Ren, and Nora burst through the door as the shot rang out, guns pointed at Tyrian and Hazel. "Did you really think we were dumb enough to come without back up?" Qrow asked as he turned back to Cinder.</p>
<p>She just smirked as she asked, "Did you think we were?"</p>
<p>"Hello brother," a woman said as she walked out of the shadows behind Cinder and Lionheart. Her hair was long and black and her eyes red like Qrow's.</p>
<p>Weiss saw surprise light up on his face before she heard Yang say in disbelief, "Mom?" She looked between the two and noticed their resemblance and looked between Qrow and her to see their similarities.</p>
<p>"Would someone care to explain what's going on?" she asked, annoyed. </p>
<p>"That's Raven," Qrow spit the words out of his mouth as if they were poison. "My sister. She abandoned HUNTRESS years ago and I can see why now. You're working for them." </p>
<p>"With them actually," she corrected, sauntering down the stairs. "I work for no one but myself. Still, Salem has been nice enough to grant me the title of Spring Maiden for everything I've given her." </p>
<p>Pointing his shotgun at her head as she walked closer to him, he said, "Give me one reason why I shouldn't blow your head off right here and now?" Weiss saw Tyrian move towards Ruby again and placed her finger on the trigger of her gun. </p>
<p>"You couldn't kill your own sister. Especially not in front of her kid," Raven said, her tone cocky although there was no smile on her face. Out of nowhere, she pulled a gun and stuck it into Qrow's gut. "And, you can't kill me unless you want to end up dead." </p>
<p>"Sounds like a fair trade to me," he said, finger tightening on the trigger. </p>
<p>"Enough," Ruby said. Qrow looked at her ashamed as pulled away from Raven. Ruby turned her attention back to Cinder and asked, "Why are you here? Who is Salem?"</p>
<p>Cinder growled and drew blood from Lionheart's neck. "I'm the one in charge here. I'm asking the questions. Why are you in Mistral? Doesn't HUNTRESS have any other use for you other than to torment me?"</p>
<p>Ruby spoke calmly as she answered, her eyes never leaving Cinder from through her scope. "We were sent here to investigate the missing agents. I see now that was you." </p>
<p>Stepping out from behind Lionheart, Cinder pulled out a gun with a silencer on it. "And I'll be the last thing you see," she said with a dark smile. "But first, I'm going to hurt you where it counts." </p>
<p>Weiss didn't hear the shot that hit her. All she knew was a blistering pain piercing through her side before she fell unconscious. Weiss woke up briefly to see Jaune and Ruby kneeling over her, but ultimately passed out as they tried talking to her.</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0007"><h2>7. Stuck with a Rose</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>Weiss wakes up in a strange place full of strange people. Good thing Ruby is there to take care of her.</p>
          </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Weiss groaned as she opened her eyes. Her whole body ached when she tried to bring a hand up to brush her hair out of her face. "Hey, it's okay. I got you," a sweet voice said to her. Weiss turned her head to where it came from as warm fingers brushed her bangs out of her eyes. She opened her eyes to see Ruby staring at her with a loving smile. "Hey snow angel," she said softly. </p>
<p>Weiss felt herself blush at the nickname. "Ruby," she said quietly. </p>
<p>The girl leaned closer to her and asked, "Yes?"</p>
<p>"Don't call me that." Weiss smiled at the pout that crossed Ruby's face. Looking around the room, she realized she had no idea as to where they were. "Where are we?" she asked as Ruby stood to pour a cup of water from a nearby pitcher. </p>
<p>"In a village between Haven and Argus. It's small and off the map so anyone who'd come looking for us wouldn't be able to find us." She brought the cup to Weiss and put it up to her lips. "Drink," she said. Weiss complied and took a sip of water, the liquid soothing her dry mouth. Ruby had her drink half the cup before pulling it away. </p>
<p>Clearing her throat, she asked, "Where is everyone else? What happened? How-" Ruby cut her off with a wave of her hand. </p>
<p>"I'll explain everything, Weiss, I promise. Just, let me get you something to eat first. You need food in your stomach. I'll be right back," she told her before popping out of the room. Weiss tried to sit up on her own but found a burning pain in her side froze her in place. She grunted as she forced herself up anyway. </p>
<p>Having never been shot before, Weiss was curious about what her wound was like. Lifting up the white shirt someone had changed her into, Weiss observed the bandage on her side that covered her injury. She tried to turn her head over her shoulder to see what her back looked like, but stopped after feeling pain due to her movements. Running her hand down her side gently, she fingered the edge of the bandage, feeling the corners peel.</p>
<p>Before she could proceed to pull it off, she heard an embarrassed cough and turned to see Ruby standing in the doorway, meal in hand as she looked at the floor, bushing. Weiss felt herself blush as she tugged her shirt into place rather roughly, making her wince. "I, um, I made you a bowl of oatmeal. I know it isn't that appetizing or anything, but I figured you'd need a light meal since it's the first time you've eaten in a while and, yeah. Is there anything else you need?" Ruby asked after she finished her ramble. </p>
<p>Weiss smiled as she accepted the tray. "My scroll," she said. "I need to see if my family has reached out to me." </p>
<p>Ruby nodded and went to the other side of the room where she dug around in a bag. "You were getting a call last night from a Winter. Actually she called you twice, but I didn't answer. I figured it wasn't my place," she told her as she handed Weiss her scroll. </p>
<p>She nodded mindlessly as she opened the messages from her sister. 'Weiss, I have not heard from you in a while. I hope everything is okay.</p>
<p>I have a break from work this weekend. We should spend time together. </p>
<p>I would like to see you. Is there any time you are available to convene?</p>
<p>I stopped by your apartment after work. You weren't home. I spoke to your neighbor and she said you haven't been home for nearly two months now. Did something happen that I am unaware of?</p>
<p>Weiss, you're concerning me. Please return my calls as soon as you can.' Weiss sighed as she read Winter's messages. She had been so caught up in work that she kept pushing off speaking with her sister. </p>
<p>She looked up and saw Ruby staring at her concerned. "I'll call her after you explain what happened," she said, placing her scroll on the bed next to her. Ruby nodded and took a seat by her side in a plush chair she had obviously dragged into the room, it's color scheme not corresponding with the sheets or curtains.</p>
<p>"Well," Ruby said when she first started eating. "If you want the short version, Cinder killed Lionheart after shooting you and after a small fight they all just ran. If you want the slightly longer version, after she shot you, she killed Lionheart and before I could get a shot at her, Tyrian attacked me. Uncle Qrow managed to back me up as Yang fought her mom. Jaune, Nora, and Ren focused all on Hazel because the big guy would just not go down. Eventually we grew to a kind of stalemate before Cinder ran off in search of Yang and Raven. She never ended up coming back, but Yang did, holding some kind of chip. Eventually, Hazel and Tyrian realized they were outnumbered without Cinder or Raven and fled. </p>
<p>Ozpin said that we needed to bring the chip back to Vale immediately, but I told him I wasn't going anywhere with you hurt." Weiss blushed at her words and glanced through the corner of her eye at Ruby who was also blushing lightly. "That's when he told me I should bring you here. Yang, Blake, and Qrow are heading to Vale while Jaune, Nora, and Ren are heading to Argus. Neither of them have the chip, we do. If anyone follows them they won't find what they're looking for. It's dangerous, I know, but Oz trusted me with it and I wasn't going to leave you all alone."</p>
<p>Weiss smiled, her heart beating slightly harder in her chest. "Thank you Ruby. That means a lot," she told her as she finished her meal. </p>
<p>Ruby nodded and stared at her for a while until she popped up. "Oh wait you probably want to call that person back," she said awkwardly. "Let me take your tray and get out of your hair for a bit." Ruby took her finished food away and left the room with a small wave. </p>
<p>Weiss rolled her eyes before getting out her scroll. She figured it would be best to just call her sister, rather than text her. The scroll rang only twice before Winter picked up. "Weiss?" her voice asked from the other side. "Is that you? Is everything okay? You haven't been around recently, I got concerned."</p>
<p>Weiss could hear the sounds of running and shouting in the background and figured Winter was at work. "Yes, it's me, Winter. I'm sorry I haven't answered my scroll recently. My job has been really demanding and I haven't had much free time. Would it be better if I called you at a later time?" Weiss asked as she heard the sound of metal falling to the floor and increased shouting.</p>
<p>"No, no. Let me find somewhere quieter, give me a moment," Winter said. Weiss could hear someone shout after her as her sister made her way to some place that had less noise. "Okay, that's better. So you were talking about your job?"</p>
<p>"Right," Weiss said, preparing to continue lying about why she wasn't in Atlas. Just then, Ruby came into the room holding a fresh pair of clothes. "Ruby, now's not the time," she tried whispering to her so Winter couldn't hear.</p>
<p>"Is there someone there with you?" Winter asked, hearing her anyway. </p>
<p>"Um, no. I mean yes. Um," Weiss tried to think of what she could tell her and thought back to the first cover story she was given when she started her mission with Ruby. "Um, I do have someone with me actually. My um, significant other is with me at the moment. I've been out of Atlas visiting her- them, and I just, didn't know how to tell you." Weiss hoped her lie sounded convincing, but even Ruby at the door shook her head.</p>
<p>"Oh," came Winter's startled voice from the phone. "I wasn't aware you were seeing anyone. I, um, you, you never mentioned them to me."</p>
<p>Deciding to continue with this story, Weiss said, "Well I didn't know how you would react. She's um," Weiss looked to the doorway where Ruby was leaning against the frame, playing a game on her scroll in one hand while wrinkling the clothes in her other. "She's not exactly Atlas elite," she settled for.</p>
<p>"I see," Winter said hesitantly. "I um, Weiss, I want you to know that I support you with this. If there is ever a time you want to talk, you can always call me... Do you mind me asking their name?" </p>
<p>"Ruby," Weiss told her, a small smile on her face.</p>
<p>"Yes?" the girl asked, walking towards her. Weiss waved her hand to have her go away, but regretted it when her side exploded in pain.</p>
<p>As she went to clutch her side, Winter responded. "Well, if you ever bring her to Atlas, I'd love to meet her. I must get going. I hope we can talk again soon." </p>
<p>Weiss hummed, her wound throbbing. Ruby had made her way to her side and was trying to help her lean back. She allowed her to guide her onto the bed, a groan leaving her lips as her back hit the mattress. "Have a good day, Winter," she managed to say through gritted teeth.</p>
<p>"You as well," she said. Ruby pulled up her shirt to check for any bleeding and Weiss felt her breath hitch. "I can hear you're busy. I'll be out of your way," Winter said, ending the call abruptly. Weiss heard the end of call tone and saw Winter had hung up. Shrugging mentally, she put her scroll down.</p>
<p>"Be careful not to move too fast," Ruby told her as she gently peeled back the bandage. "You don't want to tear your stitches." Weiss ignored the way Ruby looked at her, opting to stare at the stitches in her side rather than her stunning silver eyes.</p>
<p>"How long have I been asleep?" she asked, her hand gingerly holding up her shirt. </p>
<p>"Only a few days. Do you want to take a shower?" Ruby asked. Weiss nodded, her question making her realize how disgusting she felt all over. Ruby helped her up and brought her to the bathroom just outside of the room she woke up in. She held onto the fresh clothes Ruby had handed her and watched as she turned on the shower. "When you're getting dressed, make sure to dry your stitches with light pats. I'll clean up around here or something if you need me," she told her once she closed the curtains.</p>
<p>"Thank you," Weiss told her with a smile as she walked out of the room. Using her left hand, she started to undress herself. She tried her best to not aggravate her side, but her whole body ached with protest as she moved. The water didn't get very hot, nor did it have a high pressure, but it was soothing nonetheless as Weiss stepped into the stream of water. She sighed as it washed over her, the warmth it spread over her appreciated. </p>
<p>She was less than halfway through her shower when she realized what Winter meant by, 'You sound busy.' She stayed in the shower for an extra ten minutes trying to stop herself from blushing.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>After resting for an extra two days, per Ruby's request and puppy dog eyes, Weiss was finally out of the house. They were on a walk together around the town after Ruby realized they needed fresh groceries and Weiss asked to come along. "Brunswick Farms isn't such a bad place," she commented as the two walked through the empty streets. Ruby opened the door to the food store and they walked in together. The light above the door was flickering and an old couple was slowly browsing through the aisles, their skin dry and wrinkled. "A bit depressing though."</p>
<p>"Come on," Ruby said, grabbing her hand. "We just need a few things and then we can head back." Bringing her to the small section labeled 'Dairy' Weiss watched as Ruby picked up some milk and eggs. </p>
<p>"I can hold them if you want," she offered as Ruby tucked the cartoon of eggs under her arm as she held onto the milk. </p>
<p>Ruby looked back at her with a smile and said, "It's okay Weiss, I've got it. I don't want you straining yourself."</p>
<p>Weiss rolled her eyes as she walked up to her. "I can carry a gallon of milk, Ruby," she insisted. </p>
<p>Ruby just pouted and asked, "Do you not like the way my muscles bulge against my shirt when I carry it?" Weiss immediately went to look at her arm before she could stop herself. She blushed when Ruby started laughing and blushed even harder when she saw the truth of her previous statement, her muscles looking taunt under her tight shirt.</p>
<p>She stormed past Ruby and muttered, "Dolt," under her breath as she did. Ruby followed her with a bright grin.</p>
<p>They stayed together in Brunswick for about a week before getting a message from Jaune that said, 'Trouble in Argus. We need your help now!'</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>BRUH, I just watched the the newest episode and I'm in TEARS... Ugh I might make another sad fic now :(</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0008"><h2>8. Trouble in Argus</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>Ruby and Weiss head to Argus to help their friends. Will they be able to help or just make things worse?</p>
          </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Ruby and Weiss caught the first train to Argus that they could. Headquarters didn't have time to approve their request for tickets so Weiss paid out of pocket. Weiss looked out the window as her leg bounced up and down. She felt Ruby's hand on her thigh and turned to her. </p>
<p>She smiled at her before saying, "Don't worry too much. Juane has a sister in Argus. If things got too hot there for them they can always lie low with her." </p>
<p>Weiss nodded as she grabbed her hand. "I'm sure they'll be okay Ruby, it's just... What if this is a trap? To lure us out and get the chip from you. I don't-"</p>
<p>"Relic," Ruby said.</p>
<p>"What?" she asked. Ruby pulled the chip in question out of her pocket. It shimmered in the light, it's blue and golden color eye catching.</p>
<p>Ruby turned it around in her fingers as they both stared at it. "I asked Ozpin what it was exactly. He called it a relic and said that there are three other ones like this out in the world. He didn't tell me exactly what they do or anything, but he said the information on them is important and that no matter what, we can't let them fall in the wrong hands." </p>
<p>Weiss watched Ruby put the relic into her pocket and frowned. "That's exactly why I think we need to be more careful. If we rush into this and lose the relic, who knows how much damage GRIMM can wreck. I don't think we should risk losing it just so we can help."</p>
<p>Ruby sighed as she pulled Weiss's hands toward her. "I know. Yang, Blake, and Qrow are already in Argus, so we'll have their support too. If worse comes to worse, I can always swallow it before they can take it from me." Weiss rolled her eyes, scoffing as she pulled her hand away from Ruby.</p>
<p>"I'm being serious Ruby."</p>
<p>"I am too. You don't have to worry too much Weiss. We don't even know what trouble means. For all we know, they could have lost a file regarding information on a GRIMM outpost raid. You need to stop assuming the worst," she said, placing her hand on Weiss's shoulder. </p>
<p>Weiss turned to her with a deadpan look and said, "You need to stop assuming the best. We've all gotten hurt because of this and if the relic is just going to bring more danger into our lives, than I say we either get it back to Vale, give it to someone else, or get rid of it."</p>
<p>Ruby considered her words for a moment before she sighed. "We can't just get rid of it. It's too important and it's not like we can just mail it to Vale. How about we make a deal? We carry it through Argus and then once we're done helping out, we bring it back to Vale. That way we make sure it's secure and can still help out Jaune and the others." </p>
<p>Rubbing her face, Weiss thought before agreeing. "Fine. But the second, the second we are done we leave for Vale. Do you understand me Ruby Rose?" Ruby nodded her head vigorously, a large grin on her face the entire time.</p>
<p>"Thank you Weiss," Ruby said as she hugged her. Weiss blushed slightly and let Ruby hold onto her for a few more seconds before pushing her off. </p>
<p>"Just don't be wrong on this," Weiss warned as she turned to look back out the window. </p>
<p>"I won't be," Ruby said as she leaned her head on Weiss's shoulder. Weiss smiled and placed her hand on top of Ruby's that rested in her lap.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>'Who are we meeting again?" Weiss asked as she and Ruby stepped off the train, finally in Argus. Ruby fished for her scroll in her pocket for a moment.</p>
<p>She opened up her previous messages with Jaune and read for a minute as she searched for the information. "Jaune's sister, Saphron I think. Just look for a blonde with blue eyes," Ruby told her as she put her scroll away and lifted up her bag.</p>
<p>Weiss rolled her eyes and muttered, "How helpful," under her breath as they walked away from the boarding deck. Nevertheless she kept her eyes peeled for a woman who matched the description Ruby gave her. </p>
<p>"There she is," Ruby said, pointing to a woman with a baby in her arms. The woman saw them and started waving, the baby at her hip copying her and waving. Weiss smiled and waved back at them alongside Ruby. They walked over to her and Ruby said, "You must be Jaune's sister."</p>
<p>The woman nodded with a smile. "I'm Saphron and this cutie pie is Adrian," she said cooing at the baby in her arms. Weiss smiled and waved at the little boy as he stared at her. </p>
<p>"He's adorable," she told her.</p>
<p>"Thank you. We should get going. I'm sure my brother and his friends want to talk to you guys." Weiss and Ruby nodded as they followed Saphron away from the train station. </p>
<p>They walked for a little in silence before Ruby leaned into Weiss's personal space and asked in a whisper, "I'm still cuter right?" </p>
<p>Weiss rolled her eyes as she looked Ruby in the eye. 'Yes,' she thought. "No," she said before quickening her pace.</p>
<p>As the group walked towards upcoming rows of houses, Saphron turned to Weiss and motioned for her to walk by her with a jerk of her head. Weiss sped up until they were side by side. "So, you must be Weiss. Jaune mentioned you would be quite beautiful. I thought he was over exaggerating, but I see now he wasn't." Weiss smiled awkwardly at the older woman, unsure of what to say. "It's a shame he's too dense to see you don't swing that way," Saphron said with a smile.</p>
<p>Blushing, Weiss asked, "Um, how did you-"</p>
<p>"Oh please. My gaydar is top notch, my wife says so herself. Not to mention the way you act with her," the blonde said, looking over her shoulder to where Ruby was swinging her bag around in circles.</p>
<p>Weiss sighed as she watched Ruby drop her bag and it went flying into the street. "She's so stupid sometimes. I don't understand why I'm so attracted to her," she confessed when Ruby ran into the road. Saphron laughed at the scene before her, Adrian copying her and giggling.</p>
<p>"I couldn't tell you. Terra was such a nerd when we met in college and I was a party girl. We were complete opposites and yet we have our own life together. I guess opposites just attract," she said as she went to cross the street. </p>
<p>Weiss stayed where she was, waiting for Ruby to catch up. She was apologizing to the driver of a car that almost hit her before it sped off. She just shrugged and turned to Weiss, a smile on her face. "I guess they do," she said to herself as Ruby ran to catch up to her.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>"Ruby, Weiss, I'm glad you're here," Jaune said as he opened the door to the Cotta-Arc residence. He ushered them inside, forgetting to close the door which Saphron had to do. </p>
<p>"What happened?" Ruby asked as they followed him around the house. They walked into a large room with couches and a table where Ren, Nora, Yang, Blake, Qrow, an old woman and boy sat.</p>
<p>"What's going on? Who are these people?" Weiss asked as she took in the new faces. The woman had a goggle-like devices attached to her face somehow and the boy had on gardener gloves and dirt on his clothes. </p>
<p>"A legend and a boy," Qrow said as he took out his flask. </p>
<p>Jaune held his hand out in front of the woman and boy. "This is Maria and Oscar. They are the trouble."</p>
<p>The old lady smacked his hand before getting to her feet. "I am not trouble. I was HUNTRESS's top agent. Everyone knew me as The Grimm Reaper, I've single handedly stopped more GRIMM attacks than any of you can imagine," she said, twirling her cane around. </p>
<p>Jaune groaned before he coaxed her back into her seat, leaning her cane against the arm of the couch. "What's your deal?" Ruby asked the young boy.</p>
<p>He looked around timidly before standing up like Maria had before him. "I, um, my name is Oscar Pine. I'm, I was a farmhand, but I learned about HUNTRESS from a message I heard on an old radio and I really want to join. I want to help protect the world and when I saw Jaune, Ren, and Nora take out a crew that tried to hijack our train I figured they were my best shot at getting a spot in the organization."</p>
<p>"They both won't leave," Jaune said as he turned to Ruby with a tired expression. Weiss looked at him sympathetically before turning her gaze back to Maria and Oscar.</p>
<p>"How old are you?" Ruby asked as she placed her bags down.</p>
<p>Maria scoffed and crossed her arms. "It's rude to ask a lady her age," she said in a huff. Weiss rolled her eyes at the woman's attitude. </p>
<p>"I'm fourteen," Oscar said, his eyes darting around the room in a nervous fashion. Weiss heard Ruby sigh as she walked up to the boy. She put her hand on his shoulder and got him to look her in the eyes. </p>
<p>"Look Oscar, I'm glad you want to make the world a better place, really I am, but you're so young. I was the youngest person to ever be admitted into HUNTRESS so that's saying something. Why don't you go back home and when you're old enough, we can send someone to bring you in?" Ruby asked in a kind voice. </p>
<p>"No!" he shouted, surprising everyone in the room. "I am not going back to being a simple farmhand. I want more in life than that." He stared at the ground with his fist shaking as he took deep breaths through his nose.</p>
<p>Ruby tilted the boy's head up so she could look him in the eyes. "Hey, no need to get upset here. I understand where you're coming from, trust me, I do. It's just that none of us want to see you get hurt. This is serious and dangerous work. All of us have been hurt in some way facing GRIMM and someone as young as you should never have to go through that type of pain." Oscar just turned his head away from her and looked back at the ground. Ruby sighed and thought for a moment. "Look, Oscar. I'm going to make a call with someone tonight and I'll mention you to them.</p>
<p>If they say they have a place for you at HUNTRESS then I'll let you know right away. That's not a guarantee that you'll be let in or going on any missions any time soon, but it could be a start to what you are looking for. Is that okay with you?" He smiled at her and pulled her into a hug. Ruby returned it with a small smile on her lips. </p>
<p>"Thank you," he whispered. Weiss felt her heart warming at the scene in front of her. Seeing Ruby interact so well with kids made some part of her want to be with her even more. </p>
<p>Ruby pulled back and put her hands on her hips. "Okay that solves one problem. What's the next?" </p>
<p>"I want to get back into HUNTRESS again. I left the world in a vulnerable place and I want to right the wrongs of my past. But this stick of a boy says I'm too old to get involved anymore even though I could beat him in a fight," Maria insisted. Jaune sighed as he ran a hand over his face.</p>
<p>Saphron patted his back as she walked by. "I'll get started on dinner then. Blake you don't mind?" she asked as she handed her Adrian. The baby just climbed around in her lap until he made his way over to Yang who was inspecting a model plane. She handed it to him and he started to play. </p>
<p>Ruby laughed and said, "I'll mention you in the call too Maria. I think Weiss and I need a little time to unpack."</p>
<p>"Right of course," Jaune said as he walked out of the room. "Saph and Terra are a little tight on space so if it's okay with you guys, you'll have to stay in this spare office type room." Weiss and Ruby followed him as he opened a door. Inside was a desk piled high with papers and floor covered in boxes. "You'll just have to move some stuff around," he said as he surveyed the room.</p>
<p>"Thank you Jaune," Ruby said, putting her hand on his arm. He nodded at them both before leaving. Weiss sighed as she placed her bag down, heading to the nearest box to slide it over. </p>
<p>"Just make enough space for us to sleep," she told Ruby who started to move the boxes near her. The two worked silently until a small area was cleared, enough for the both of them to lie side by side without any problem. </p>
<p>"Dinner time," Saphron said as she popped her head into the room. The two followed her to the dining room. When Ruby sat down, Saphron whispered in Weiss's ear, "Don't be afraid to make a move," with a wink. Weiss just blushed as she sat down and ate the casserole that was prepared in silence.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Weiss walked back from the bathroom with her toothpaste and toothbrush in hand. She had gotten ready for bed while Ruby made a call to Ozpin. She knocked politely on the office door before she opened it slightly. Ruby was lying on the blankets Terra had let them borrow, staring at the ceiling. "How did things go?" Weiss asked as she put her things away.</p>
<p>Ruby watched her with a smile before saying, "Ozpin said that he was going to have to find a way to stop the HUNTRESS broadcast on old radios, but that he'd be willing to take Oscar on as his apprentice. As for Maria, he said it would be an honor if she came back to the organization."</p>
<p>Weiss crawled beside her on the blanket and laid down under one of the sheets. "I guess that means we'll have good news for everyone tomorrow then," she said with a smile. Ruby turned on her side to face her and stared into her eyes.</p>
<p>"Yeah, it does." They smiled at each other softly. Weiss felt herself blush as Ruby's hand came up to her face. Her finger traced her cheekbone delicately. Her hand slowly cupped her whole face and Weiss waited in anticipation with her eyes closed as Ruby started to lean in. "You have food in your hair," she whispered.</p>
<p>Weiss's eyes snapped open and her hand went up to her head. She was blushing wildly as Ruby grabbed her arm and took the bit of baby food out of her hair. "Adrian was so well behaved during the day. You would think he wouldn't play with his food," Weiss said in an attempt to calm herself. Her eyes landed on Ruby's lips as she hummed in agreement. She was so close Weiss could smell the mouthwash on her breath.</p>
<p>"Can I hold you when we sleep?" Ruby asked, her eyes snapping to Weiss's as she rubbed the food on her pants. Weiss just nodded wordlessly and turned her back to Ruby. Her heart pounded in her chest as she felt her arms wrap gently around her. Eventually the warmth from Ruby being pressed up against her, lulled her into a restful sleep. </p>
<p>No one knew of the danger that waited in the waters of the harbor.</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0009"><h2>9. Water Wars</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>A threat emerges in Argus harbor. Weiss and her friends rush to take it down and protect the city from the danger of GRIMM.</p>
          </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Weiss woke to the smell of bacon being cooked. Her body was warm as Ruby still hugged her from behind, one arm wrapped around her waist and other under her head. She enjoyed the feeling of her body pressed up against her own, the slow falling and rising of her chest letting her know Ruby was still in a deep sleep. </p>
<p>Pulling back the blanket carefully, Weiss made her way out of Ruby's arms as she got up. When she didn't wake her, she grabbed her toothpaste and toothbrush before heading out of the room. She walked silently to the bathroom where she knocked before entering. </p>
<p>After she finished washing up, she took her things and quietly put them back in the room she and Ruby were sharing. When she walked into the kitchen, she greeted Saphron and Oscar with a, "Good morning."</p>
<p>Saphron turned to her with a smile. "Good morning Weiss. I hope bacon and some toastable waffles will be good enough for breakfast. We're weren't really prepared to be feeding so many guests." Oscar was sipping juice as he fed Adrian in his highchair. </p>
<p>Weiss poured herself a cup of coffee as she replied with a small smile. "That sounds wonderful. If preparing all this food for us id too much, I'd be more than willing to treat everyone to dinner and lunch."</p>
<p>"Yay! Rich friend perks," Yang said as she walked into the kitchen. Weiss rolled her eyes and handed Yang the pot of coffee as she sat down at the table.</p>
<p>Saphron giggled as she placed more pieces of bacon on the pan. "Thank you for the offer, but it's no trouble really. I'm the one who buys the groceries and if growing up with 7 other siblings taught me anything, it's how to stock up. So we have lots of frozen meals for anyone who is hungry." Weiss nodded as she sipped her coffee, her stomach growling as she smelled the bacon cooking. Blake and Ren walked into the kitchen together, her hair slightly messy while his was braided neatly.</p>
<p>"Good morning everyone," Ren said. "Is there any tea?" </p>
<p>"There's a kettle in the cabinet under the coffee maker," Terra said as she walked in the room. She moved past Yang and dug it out before handing it to Ren. She was already dressed for work, pouring herself a cup of coffee to go. "I have to get out to the tower before my boss throws a fit. The tower has been picking up something huge on it's radar systems even though there's nothing in the water. They need me to take a look at what could be going wrong."</p>
<p>"Will you be back for dinner?" Saphron asked as she placed a kiss on her wife's cheek.</p>
<p>Terra sighed as she shook her head. "I probably won't leave until I fix the problem but if I can't get it fixed today I'll be home at midnight the latest." Saphron nodded as her wife kissed her forehead and said a quick, "I love you," and kissed Adrian's head before leaving. Ren filled the kettle up with water before putting it on the stove. </p>
<p>Weiss smiled at Blake as she took a seat next to her. "How was your week off with Ruby?" she asked kindly. </p>
<p>"Yeah, how did it feel having my sister act as your personal nurse?" Yang asked as she sat across from Weiss. "Did she take care of all your needs?" Weiss rolled her eyes and blushed at the same time. She saw Oscar perk up at the mention of Ruby, but he just held a spoon out to the baby.</p>
<p>She took a sip of her coffee before answering Blake. "It was nice being able to rest for a while without worrying about something going wrong. That is until something went wrong and we had to leave early. My side still hurts occasionally, but other than that I feel fine. Ruby made sure I got a lot of rest so I wouldn't accidently reinjure myself doing something stupid."</p>
<p>"Bummer," Yang said as she drank from her cup.</p>
<p>"I'm glad you got some time off. Out of all of us, you were probably the one who needed it most," Blake said as she took a cup of tea that Ren handed to her. He took a seat next to Yang and blew on his drink lightly before taking a sip. </p>
<p>Saphron placed plates of food on the table and grabbed syrup from the fridge. "No offense to your other friends, but they eat a lot. You guys should have some before they get up. I'll make more later." Weiss nodded at the woman's words and made herself a plate. They were not long into breakfast before Maria joined them, complaining about how Jaune tried to give her his bed last night, saying she was too old to be sleeping on the couch.</p>
<p>Nora and Jaune joined them a while later. He finished up the leftover coffee in the pot and set another one to make while Nora groaned. Ren gave her a cup of tea and she sulked as she drank from it begrudgingly. Ruby walked out of the office room as Weiss got up to refill her cup. "Morning sleepy head," she told her as she walked past her, ruffling her hair. Ruby stuck her tongue out at her as she walked up behind her. </p>
<p>She wrapped her arms around Weiss's waist and leaned her head on her shoulder as she asked, "Could you pour me a cup?" </p>
<p>Weiss blushed at her touch and tried to keep her nerve as she asked, "How do you like it?"</p>
<p>"Cream and five sugars," she said after stifling a yawn. Weiss nodded and grabbed five packets of sugar to dump in the drink.</p>
<p>"You're going to get diabetes if you keep consuming this much sugar," Weiss told her as she turned around and handed Ruby her drink. The younger girl just shrugged as she made her way to the table. She took the seat Weiss was previously sitting in and she rolled her eyes, walking to stand behind the chair. </p>
<p>"Has uncle Qrow come eat breakfast yet?" Ruby asked as she piled waffles and bacon onto her plate. Yang shook her head, hand pointed at the living room.</p>
<p>"He's still passed out on the couch from last night," she said with her mouth full.</p>
<p>Weiss cringed at her while Blake suggested, "We should leave some Aura pills out to help him with his hangover." </p>
<p>"I knew I liked you for a reason," his husky voice said from the doorway. Everyone turned to Qrow as he walked into the kitchen with his hand rubbing his temple. Saphron handed him some pills she took out from the cabinet along with a cup of coffee. He took both with a pained smile and turned to the group at the table. "So what's the plan for today? Any word from HUNTRESS yet?"</p>
<p>"That's right!" Ruby exclaimed as she jumped out of her seat, knocking into Weiss. "Oz-Our leader has given me wonderful news! Oscar will be allowed to apprentice in Vale and Maria is welcomed to join back! Something about no one would suspect an old lady of being a secret agent." </p>
<p>Oscar turned to her with a bright smile and said, "Thank you so much. This means more to me than you know." Ruby patted his shoulder, a grin on her face. Maria just stared down Jaune with her arms crossed as the man sighed.</p>
<p>"Anyway, as for what's going on, Weiss and I need to get back to Vale so we can bring Oscar and Maria with us so they can get set up. As for the rest of you, I guess you should just follow through with any assignments you're given," Ruby said as she thought out loud. The group nodded in tandem and continued to enjoy their meal together until Saphron's scroll began to ring.</p>
<p>She answered it with a concerned look. "Hey sweetheart. Is something-" she went quiet as, Terra, Weiss assumed, started speaking. "Honey, honey, calm down. What's going on." She was silent for a moment and clicked a button on her scroll. "Okay you're on speaker. Everyone is here."</p>
<p>The group listened intently as Terra spoke. "Kids, I need you all to listen carefully. The 'huge thing' that was showing up on the radar wasn't a glitch. It was a submarine. It just surfaced a couple miles away from the harbor, but it's coming at it really fast. The Atlesian Military Base can't get here in time to stop it. I don't know if this falls under your level of expertise, but we need help. It's painted black with a leviathan drawn on the side." </p>
<p>"GRIMM," Ruby said. "We'll be there as soon as possible Terra. That's a GRIMM ship. Whatever they're planning, we can't let them go through with it. Everyone get your stuff. We move out in five." Everyone nodded at her directions and started running to get what they needed. As Weiss made her way to where she left her stuff, she overheard Ruby say to both Terra and Saphron, "Everything will be okay. We can handle this."</p>
<p> </p>
<p>The group ran through Argus without bothering to conceal their weapons. People were bound to notice an incoming submarine so being inconspicuous didn't matter much. "How are we supposed to stop this thing again?" Nora asked as they ran. </p>
<p>Weiss had been thinking the same thing but was sure Ruby had a plan. "Someone has to be driving it. Take out the driver and we'll be set," Ruby told the group as they came up to the harbor. </p>
<p>"How would we even get that shot?" Weiss asked as she looked at the machine move through the water from atop the bridge that connected the Atlas Military Base to Argus.</p>
<p>They watched as it surged closer and closer to the city, Atlas reinforcements just leaving their docks. The sound of whirring blades caught everyone's attention as a helicopter took off. "From the air," Maria said. "Get me inside and I can pilot a helicopter. I can get Ruby the shot, but we need to hurry before all of them take off." </p>
<p>The group looked for Ruby for confirmation. "Okay, let's do it." They ran the rest of the way to the base, slipping past the gate that wasn't shut all the way and heading towards the remaining helicopters. </p>
<p>"This thing can't hold all of us so I need you guys to decide who needs to come. There are only three other seats available with Ruby and I," Maria told them as she made her way into the aircraft. </p>
<p>Ruby looked at everyone and said, "Nora, Ren, Jaune, Blake, and Qrow, you guys would be of more use on the ground if I end up missing. Weiss, Yang, I could use you both up there. Oscar, you can probably learn something with a hands on experience." The group nodded and dispersed. Yang, Oscar, and Weiss made their way into the helicopter after Ruby as the rest of the group ran out of the base to get to the cliffside that overlooked the harbor and could possibly give them a vantage point on the GRIMM machinery. </p>
<p>Oscar took a seat next to Maria and Weiss sat in between Ruby and Yang. They all strapped in and prepared for liftoff when a woman came running towards them. "That is the property of Atlas! You can't just take off with that!" she yelled after them.</p>
<p>"Who is that?" Weiss asked as they got into the air. </p>
<p>Maria scoffed before answering. "The she-devil herself. Caroline Cordovin. Ignore her, she's always had a stick up her a-"</p>
<p>"Okay, I think we get it," Ruby said, cutting her off. The five were silent as they took to the air. Weiss had never been in a helicopter before, always enjoying the luxuries of private jets and planes. Yang also seemed to have never been in one either, her eyes wide as she took in the view they got from up in the air. </p>
<p>"Do you really think you'll be able to get the shot Ruby?" she asked, looking over Weiss towards her sister. The younger girl seemed nervous so Weiss put her hand on her thigh with a small smile on her face. </p>
<p>Ruby smiled back at her and nodded. "I can get it, I'll just need to concentrate," Ruby told her.</p>
<p>"Well you better start focusing," Maria called to them. "It's coming up." Weiss peered out of the open doors of the helicopter to see the metal body of the submarine surfacing. Bright flashes occurred underwater and bubbles surfaced. </p>
<p>"Missiles," Yang said with equal amounts of awe and horror in her voice. </p>
<p>"Get Nora and Ren on them. He's the second best shot and Nora has her grenade launcher," Ruby told Yang who had already pulled out her scroll. "How long until you can line me up?"</p>
<p>"Now," Maria said as she slowed them to a stop in the air. Ruby nodded and unstrapped herself. Weiss followed in suit so she could help if Ruby needed her. "Pay attention kid," she heard Maria tell Oscar as Ruby pulled out her rifle. Weiss could hear explosions coming from underneath them and assumed that the others on the ground managed to take out the missiles. </p>
<p>Ruby positioned herself in the middle of the door. Stance wide and knees bent. Weiss grabbed onto the straps that were attached to their seats as she grabbed onto the back of Ruby's belt. She smiled at her gratefully before turning back to the water. Her breathing was slow and even, her finger pulling ever so slightly on the trigger of her gun as she stared down its scope.</p>
<p>Weiss held her breath in anticipation as time seemed to slow around them. The sound of a bullet ripping through the air hurt her ears as Ruby took the shot. She hit her mark and Weiss could see red splatter on broken glass as the submarine slowed dramatically.</p>
<p>Ruby was quick to celebrate and Weiss had to move fast to tug her into the aircraft before she managed to fall out. Pulling on her belt with more force than needed, Ruby fell back into her arms and Weiss pulled her onto her lap as she took a seat. Her heart hammered in her chest as adrenaline coursed through her. </p>
<p>"Don't do stupid things you dunce," Weiss scolded as she made her way into her own seat. </p>
<p>"Sorry Weiss," Ruby said with a meek smile on her face.</p>
<p>"What are we going to do about it now?" Yang asked, gaining all of their attention. "That thing is still moving towards land just slower. How do we stop it?" </p>
<p>"We'll leave the Atlas Military to take care of it. We did our part," Maria said as she maneuvered them out of the air. She landed them on the cliffside where Nora, Ren, Jaune, Blake, and Qrow waited for them.</p>
<p>As they got out of the helicopter, Nora ran up to Ruby and grabbed her in her arms, spinning her around in circles as she cheered. Blake ran up to Yang who pulled her into a hug and gave her a quick kiss. "You did good up there kiddo," Qrow said as he ruffled Ruby's hair after Nora put her down. </p>
<p>Weiss walked up to Ruby's side with a smile on her face. Ruby smiled at everyone before frowning. "I'm glad we took it down, but why would GRIMM waste so many resources to attack Argus?" she asked.</p>
<p>Weiss thought for a moment before something occurred to her that hadn't before. "What if," she said slowly, "they came because they thought Jaune, Nora, and Ren had the relic?" </p>
<p>"What relic?" Jaune asked, confused. Weiss shared a look with Ruby who sighed as she turned to their friends.</p>
<p>"We have a lot to explain," she said, her happy mood extinguished. Weiss put her hand on her shoulder and together they explained what they knew.</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0010"><h2>10. Relics and Reveals</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>Ozpin summons the group to Vale so he can give them important news in person.</p>
          </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>"So the relics hold the information to what exactly? Destroy the world?" Jaune asked after they had made their way back to his sisters house.</p>
<p>Ruby sighed and leaned back into the couch as she ran her hands down her face. "I'm not sure, but whatever it is, we can't let GRIMM get their hands on it. Weiss and I were going to head to Vale after she got better, but then we got your message and rushed out here." Ruby let her gaze fall on Weiss who was sitting next to her.</p>
<p>Putting her hand on her lap, Weiss said, "I think now what we should do is get back to Vale. HUNTRESS is going to want this chip back and if the GRIMM were willing to send a submarine to Argus just to scare Jaune, Nora, and Ren, then who knows what they sent to Vale after Yang, Blake, and Qrow. We need to go and warn agents of the danger that might be coming."</p>
<p>"Or maybe they knew attacking Argus would bring you guys here to check it out and they used the attack to lure the relic out into the open," Jaune said, deep in thought. The group was silent as they considered what he said.</p>
<p>"If that's the case, we should all head back to Vale before Cinder or whoever they decide to send can make their way to Argus," Blake said from her place leaning against the wall. Weiss watched Ruby look around the room before sighing deeply. She was about to speak when her scroll began to ring. </p>
<p>"I have to take this," she said as she looked at the caller id. "I'll be right back." She got up and made her way to where she and Weiss had stayed the night prior. The room was quiet as everyone waited for her to come back. Qrow pulled out his flask and took a long sip of the liquor inside. </p>
<p>Weiss sighed as her leg bounced and down, her mind and body both restless. No matter where they went, as long as they had the relic, GRIMM agents would follow them. Blake took a seat next to her and placed her hand on her shoulder. Weiss stopped her leg from moving and gave her a small smile. </p>
<p>Saphron walked into the room with a tray in her hand. "I made lunch," she announced as she placed it on the table. Everyone looked at the sandwiches with an uneasy glance.</p>
<p>"I'll make some tea," Ren said as he followed Saphron into the kitchen. Nora looked around the room a few times before awkwardly heading to the kitchen herself. Yang was the first person to grab a sandwich, taking a large bite before smiling. She picked one up and handed it to Blake. </p>
<p>"It's really good," she told her with her mouth full. Weiss looked at her in disgust, but saw out of the corner of her eye, Oscar grab two, taking one for himself and giving the other to Maria. Jaune took one off the tray and looked back at Qrow, holding it up to him.</p>
<p>"I'm fine with my drink kid," he told him while holding up his flask. Jaune just nodded and started to eat his lunch. Ren and Nora came back into the room holding a teapot and cups. Nora placed them in front of everyone and Ren started to fill up everyone's cups. </p>
<p>As Nora picked up a sandwich, Saphron came in holding Adrian and a sippy cup. "Can you take care of him real quick? I need to go start the wash," she asked Blake as she put the cup on the table. Blake nodded and stood to take the baby from her. He giggled as he was passed between the women. </p>
<p>Weiss smiled at him as he stared at her with wide eyes. He reached his hands out towards her when Blake sat him on her lap. Weiss grabbed his sippy cup and handed it to him. He smiled and took it from her happily. She felt her heart swell as she watched him suck on his drink. </p>
<p>"We have to get back to Vale. All of us," Ruby said as she walked back into the room. "The headmaster needs to brief us on the information he discovered from when Cinder attacked us. We head out tonight, so everyone start getting ready." </p>
<p>"Who's the headmaster?" Oscar asked as everyone walked off to get ready. </p>
<p>"You'll meet him soon enough pipsqueak," Qrow said as he made his way upstairs. </p>
<p>Weiss watched Oscar hesitantly grab his bag from behind the couch and start to gather his things. She saw Blake out of the corner of her eye bouncing Adrian on her knee with a smile. "I can hold him when you get packed up," she offered. "My things are already put together."</p>
<p>"Thank you Weiss," Blake said as she passed her the baby. Weiss smiled at her as she made her way upstairs with Yang. </p>
<p>"Hi buddy," she said to him as he stared up at her. He smiled at her and she could feel a grin break out on her own face.</p>
<p>"You're good with kids," Ruby said as she took a seat next to her. Weiss smiled at her and laid her head on her shoulder. </p>
<p>"You are too," she said with a light blush. Ruby wrapped her arm over her shoulders and leaned her head against hers as she kept her eyes on Adrian. </p>
<p>"Do you ever want any of your own?" she asked as she held out her hand to him. Weiss hummed in thought as he grabbed onto Ruby's fingers. </p>
<p>"One or two some day. What about you?" She asked, her eyes drifting to Ruby's fingers in Adrian's grasp.</p>
<p>"I guess one or two now." Weiss blushed and her head shot off Ruby's shoulder. She stared at her, face red and mouth agape. Ruby started to laugh, bringing her hand up to cover her mouth for a moment before gazing into Weiss's eyes. </p>
<p>Weiss felt her heart stop as Ruby swiftly leaned in and gave her a kiss on the cheek. She wasn't sure how red she was by the time she pulled back, but she was willing to bet her face could pass as a tomato. "Y-you dolt!" Weiss managed to stutter out.</p>
<p>"Everyone is in a packing frenzy upstairs," Saphron said as she entered the room. "I guess that means you guys are leaving soon." The woman grabbed her baby out of Weiss's arms after setting the laundry basket on the ground. She glanced between Ruby's lovestruck face and Weiss's red one before asking, "Did I interrupt something?"</p>
<p>"No," Weiss said quickly as she practically ran out of the room. Saphron sent Ruby a confused glance as the younger girl started to laugh.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Weiss tried her best to stifle a yawn as they rode from the airport to headquarters. After a two and a half hour flight from Argus with little sleep and no coffee, she was exhausted. Ruby on the other hand was buzzing with energy and Weiss sent a look of disgust her way more than once. Unfortunately, she never noticed.</p>
<p>Yang drove with Blake in the passenger seat while Weiss, Ruby, and Oscar sat in the back. They had called dibs on him and forced him into the middle since he was the smallest. He didn't seem to mind, happy to finally be out of Mistral. Jaune did mind, not wanting to spend a car ride in the beck with Maria and Qrow.</p>
<p>As much as she didn't want to, Weiss felt herself start to drift to sleep as their drive went on. She let herself lean into her seat, but couldn't get comfortable. Aggravated, Weiss turned and glared at Oscar who in turn became frightened. Rolling her eyes, she laid her head on his shoulder in an attempt to get comfortable. While her neck was at an awkward angle, it felt better than leaning against her seat. She quickly fell asleep and Oscar sat rigid and still under her the whole time.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Weiss woke up suddenly when the car came to a stop. She blinked until her vision wasn't blurry anymore and took her head off of Oscar's shoulder. They were back in the empty parking garage that led to headquarters. </p>
<p>Sitting up straight, Weiss stretched out her neck. "Thank you Oscar," she said as she got out of the car. </p>
<p>She shut the door as he started to say, "You're welcome." She winced before shrugging to herself and walking towards the door of the secret building. A second car pulled up next to theirs and the rest of the group got out.</p>
<p>"I am never sitting between those two ever again," Jaune declared as he stormed out of the car after Qrow got out. Maria laughed as she shut the door to the car. The wall opened up and they all began to walk inside. </p>
<p>Weiss looked over her shoulder for Ruby who was excitedly talking to Oscar. She felt a pit form in her stomach and frowned. An arm was slung over her shoulders and she frowned even harder. "I see you caught some z's back there Weiss queen," Yang said as she guided her into the building. "Ruby was so jealous it wasn't her you rested your pretty little head on."</p>
<p>Weiss blushed as she asked hopefully, "Really?" </p>
<p>Yang shrugged. "I don't know. Probably." Weiss rolled her eyes and pulled out of Yang's grasp. </p>
<p>"Glynda," Blake said as she walked past them towards Goodwitch who was standing at the end of the hallway. Weiss and Yang followed her as the rest of the group watched the wall close for Oscar's sake.</p>
<p>"Miss Belladonna, Xiao Long, Schnee," she greeted with a nod. "Will Ms. Calavera be joining us?"</p>
<p>"And Oscar too," Ruby said as she ran up to them. Goodwitch nodded and began to walk down the hall towards Ozpin's office. Ruby beckoned the group with a wave of her hand and they followed after her.</p>
<p>The blonde who wasn't trying to molest their fiancé in front of a child knocked on the door. "Come in," the voice from inside called. Everyone made their way into the office where Ozpin stood behind his desk with his hands clasped behind him. "Hello everyone. It's good to see new faces. And old ones too," he said with a smile as his eyes landed on Maria. "I'm glad you all could make it to Vale safely.</p>
<p>I have some, troubling news regarding the information you got from Cinder. This Salem that was mentioned is not a person as we once thought, but an artificial intelligence. As far as I can tell, some part of her coding has been around since the world began. This difference between Salem and an Atlas military drone is she has a will. Unlike regular intelligence, she doesn't follow commands. Instead she comes up with her own and others follow her orders.</p>
<p>While I do not know who programmed her, they made it so she could never be taken offline. If she was human, you could consider her immortal. With this in mind I have a feeling that she was after the relics as a way to gain even more information about whatever there is she needs to know that she doesn't already. Because of this and the relic's inability to be destroyed, I have decided to send you all to Atlas to gather the relic hidden at Atlas University by General Ironwood and bring it back to me."</p>
<p>"With all due respect sir," Ruby began once he stopped talking, "Wouldn't us gathering them in one place just make Vale a bigger threat?"</p>
<p>He smiled at her as he looked at the ground. "You are quite right Miss Rose, it would. But, the alternative is to have them out in the world where they can not be protected to the fullest extent. Each relic was given to a different headmaster at each university as a way to keep them out of harm's way and protect the world. Leonardo Lionheart has shown us that we can no longer trust the people we thought were on our side. It's best if we collect all of the relics before any headmaster gets an idea that tells them to use the relic for their own purpose or give it to Salem."</p>
<p>The group looked at each other uneasily and Ozpin sighed. "I know this all seems very ludacris which is why I took my time truly learning all I could about Salem. From what I could conclude from my research it's that she's set on destroying the world. Her attacks have no other purpose than to wipe out land and resources. If we bring all the relics together, not only do I hope to keep them out of her grasp, but I hope we can find a way to stop her. To do that, I'll need all of your help."</p>
<p>Weiss glanced at Ruby who was already staring at her. She nodded at her and Ruby said, "We'll do it. We'll go to Atlas and get the relic. When do we leave?" Ozpin smiled at them and pushed his glasses up the bridge of his nose. </p>
<p>"This will be a mission we send you into well prepared. I was unsure how you all would react to my proposition so I held off on making any plans. I welcome you to spend the day in Vale as we get together everything you'll need for this trip. If you don't have any warmer clothes, I recommended you go shopping. Until then, I'm sure you are all tired. I have booked rooms for you all at the Beacon Bungalows. I hope you'll enjoy your night." </p>
<p>Everyone nodded at him and left with small waves and quiet goodbyes. "Oscar," Ozpin said before he could walk out of the room. "I'd like for you to stay behind. If you want to join HUNTRESS you have much to learn."</p>
<p>The boy nodded and Ruby told him, "Good luck," as she and Weiss walked out of the room.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Weiss groaned as she heaved her bag towards her room. "Let me get that for you," Ruby said as she picked up Weiss's bag with ease. Weiss rolled her eyes, but followed her with a smile as she walked towards her room. She opened the door with the keycard from on her scroll and let Ruby walk in. </p>
<p>"Thank you," Weiss said as she placed her bag on her bed. "I'm exhausted for some reason."</p>
<p>"Well, you should get lots of rest then tonight. I can get out of your pretty hair if you want," Ruby offered as she walked towards the door.</p>
<p>Weiss shut the door and backed against it. "You don't want to stay with me tonight?" she asked. She saw a faint blush on Ruby's cheeks as she scratched the back of her neck.</p>
<p>"You want me to stay?" she asked. Weiss blushed as she nodded slowly. "Okay," she said timidly. Weiss smirked at her and walked up to her. Ruby smiled at her awkwardly as she backed up against the bed as Weiss got closer to her. Her thighs hit the back of the bed and she sat down nervously. </p>
<p>Weiss placed her hands on both sides of Ruby as she leaned close to her. She could feel Ruby's eyes travel to her chest as her shirt dipped down. She brought her mouth up to her ear and whispered, "You're sitting on my bag Ruby Rose." </p>
<p>She leaned back and smiled as she saw Ruby's bright red face. She leaned back and she shot up in front of her. "Right, sorry. Heh." Weiss smiled as she shuffled to the side and grabbed her night clothes from her bag. </p>
<p>She spent the night in Ruby's arms, sleeping soundly with a smile on her face.</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0011"><h2>11. The Atlas Elite</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>As the group lands in Atlas they try their best to keep the reason for their visit on the down low.</p>
          </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Being back in Atlas was a nice change for Weiss. She was in her element in the cold. Ruby, wasn't. "Weiss," she complained, wrapping her arms around herself. "It's so cold."</p>
<p>Weiss rolled her eyes as she unpacked her bag. "I told you to pack your warmest clothes dunce. We can go shopping later, but we need to get to the university first." She took out her daggers, placing them on the bed cautiously. </p>
<p>"I didn't think it would be this cold," Ruby said as she plopped onto the bed. Weiss felt her eye twitch as her weapons bounced into the air before settling back on the mattress. She sighed before grabbing them and placing them in their designated holster at her waist. "Shouldn't we hide our weapons?" Ruby asked as she watched Weiss. </p>
<p>"Atlas doesn't allow you to conceal your weapons. If you want to carry them they have to be visible. Atlas University is practically a military academy so we don't have to worry about seeming out of place," she explained as she put her bag away. "Are Yang and Blake ready yet?" </p>
<p>Ruby got to her feet as she nodded. "Yeah, I think they're waiting in the lobby. Qrow should be at the university by now and Jaune texted me that him, Ren, Nora, and Maria all just left for Mantle. Oscar is going to stay with Oz in Vale for a while until he feels he's ready to join us." </p>
<p>"Well we should go join them and get going. It's going to get colder tonight and I will not hear about how cold you are all night," Weiss said as she walked out of the room. Ruby followed behind her with a smile and grabbed her hand as they walked towards the elevator. Weiss blushed but held her hand anyway. </p>
<p>Ruby pressed the button and they waited in silence for the elevator to get to their floor. Stepping into it once the doors opened, Weiss heard her scroll ping and dropped Ruby's hand to take it out of her pocket. She ignored Ruby's pout as she read the message.</p>
<p>'Weiss, I have the evening off from work tonight. I was wondering if you would like for me to stop by your apartment and check on everything.' The text was from Winter.</p>
<p>'You don't have to, I'm sure everything is fine. I just landed in Atlas a few hours ago and can check on things on my own. Thank you for your offer,' she wrote. She contemplated deleting the part of her message about being in Atlas, but figured there was a chance she would run into her sister at the University and it would be best if she told her instead of her having to find out.</p>
<p>"Who are you texting?" Ruby asked as she zipped up her jacket. </p>
<p>"My sister. She offered to check on my apartment for me, but I told her I was in Atlas so she didn't have to. Would you want to come with me tonight to make sure everything is in order?" Weiss asked without ever taking her eyes off her scroll.</p>
<p>"Sure!" Ruby said with a smile just as she got another text from Winter.</p>
<p>'That's wonderful to hear. Have you come alone or brought Ruby with you?' Weiss blushed at her sister's message. </p>
<p>Ruby tilted her head in confusion as she saw the blush pop up on her face. 'Ruby is with me.' Weiss deleted several other messages before deciding to just send that. The door to the elevator opened and the red and white pair walked out. </p>
<p>They walked over to where Yang and Blake were sitting at a table in the dinning area of the hotel. The couple spotted them and got up. "This place is ten times better than the Glass Unicorn," Yang said as they walked out of the building. </p>
<p>Weiss nodded in agreement as they made their way to their car. "The majority of Atlas hotels are owned by the Schnee family. We take hospitality and comfort to the next level," Weiss said with a smile as she got into the backseat alongside Ruby.</p>
<p>"Is there a building in Atlas your family doesn't own?" Blake asked with a smile. Weiss rolled her eyes and scoffed while Yang and Ruby laughed. </p>
<p>Her scroll pinged and she focused her attention on it. 'If you two are free tonight, would you like to join me for dinner? I'd love to meet her.' </p>
<p>Ruby's head landed on her shoulder and Weiss blushed. "Ooo, I'd love dinner," she said after reading the message off of her scroll.</p>
<p>"We're getting dinner?" Yang asked as she looked at the two through the rearview mirror. </p>
<p>"No," Weiss said. "My sister invited Ruby and I to dinner tonight. I'll have to tell her no because of the mission." </p>
<p>"Or," Ruby said, taking her scroll from her hands as she objected. "We tell her we'll go to dinner and keep our reason for being here inconspicuous."</p>
<p>Weiss rolled her eyes as she reached to take her scroll out of Ruby's hands. "You're just saying that because you want a free dinner." Ruby shrugged and Weiss took the device from her hand with a glare. </p>
<p>She looked to see what Ruby had typed. 'Yes, we'd love to go to dinner with you. What time will you be free?' A feeling of dread and horror washed over her as she realized Ruby had already sent the message.</p>
<p>The glare she sent her was ice cold and she saw Ruby shrink under her gaze. "We're here lovebirds," Yang said as the car came to a stop. Weiss stormed out with a groan, followed by a very apologetic Ruby. </p>
<p>"Weiss! I'm sorry," Ruby called as she chased after her. Weiss just rolled her eyes and kept walking towards Atlas University. "Slow down!" She sighed and stopped so the others could catch up. She kept her back turned to Ruby who slammed into her back and nearly knocked her to the ground. </p>
<p>"Watch it you dolt," she snapped as she regained her balance. She was nearly knocked over again as Ruby hugged her from behind, burying her face in the back of her neck.</p>
<p>"I'm sorry," she mumbled into her skin. Weiss stood rigid and red in her arms. She blushed even harder as Yang and Blake passed by, snickering at her.</p>
<p>"It-it's fine Ruby. Let's just go," she muttered, trying to avoid thinking about the feeling of Ruby's lips against her. She pulled away from her and Weiss was less than thrilled to lose the feeling of warmth she got with Ruby pressed against her. Ruby grabbed her hand and smiled at her as she dragged her to the university. </p>
<p> </p>
<p>Walking through the halls of Atlas University brought back many memories for Weiss. Walking to class, sneaking out of boys dorms in the middle of the night, having conferences with teachers. She smiled to herself, but quickly stopped when Ruby tugged her over to a display case.</p>
<p>"Oh my Oum, Weiss. That's you!" she said as she pointed to a framed picture. "I didn't know you fenced." The picture she had noticed was taken right after Weiss had won the Atlas National Fencing Tournament. She stood tall with her saber in one hand and helmet held to her side with the other. Her hair was in an off center ponytail and was bleeding from a wound around her left eye. </p>
<p>Her hand went up to her scar as she looked it over. "She was quite the fencer," a voice said from behind them. The pair turned to see Winter standing with a smile on her face and hands clasped together.</p>
<p>"Winter," Weiss said with a smile. </p>
<p>"It's good to see you again. I presume this is Ruby," she said as she stuck her hand out to the younger girl.</p>
<p>Ruby smiled sheepishly, one hand going to scratch the back of her neck as the other shook Winter's. "It's nice to meet you."</p>
<p>"A pleasure. What are you two doing at the university?" she asked, her smile fading. Weiss saw out of the corner or her eye, Yang, Blake, and Qrow waiting for them at the end of the hall. </p>
<p>"I have a meeting with General Ironwood regarding work, but it doesn't start until later on so Weiss offered to give me a tour of the campus in the meantime," Ruby said with a smile. Weiss watched her sister's eyes flicker to their conjoined hands before back up to both of their faces.</p>
<p>She was about to speak when a voice from the end of the hall called out, "Specialist Schnee. You're needed by the Ace Operatives for training." The three turned to see a woman in an Atlas military uniform standing alone. "Ma'am," she said with a salute after all their attention was on her.</p>
<p>Winter sighed before turning back to the two girls. "I must get going," she said. "I will pick you up for dinner at twenty hundred hours. Have a good day." She walked off with a nod and left the girls on their own. </p>
<p>Weiss sighed and tugged Ruby away from the display case. "Come on. We don't want to be late." </p>
<p> </p>
<p>The group was forced to wait outside Ironwood's office as he spoke with someone else. Weiss sat in one of the chairs in the hallway across from Blake. Ruby was next to her, leaning her head on her shoulder while Yang was trying to sneakily slide her hand up Blake's thigh. Qrow was trying to discreetly sip from his flask and failing in the process.</p>
<p>Weiss rolled her eyes and peered over Ruby's head. She was tugging at her fingerless gloves before pulling them back on all the way. "Stop that," she said, slapping at Ruby's hands. She pouted at her before grabbing Weiss's hands to hold in her own.</p>
<p>"The general will see you now," a girl's voice said. Weiss looked up to see a red head with bright green eyes smiling at them and a tall man with brown hair and green eyes walk away from the room, eyeing Qrow as he went. They all stood and nodded at her as they made their way into his office. She accompanied them and shut the door.</p>
<p>"It's good to see you all," Ironwood said to them once the door shut. The girl walked up to his desk and stood off to the side of him. "Miss Rose, Miss Schnee, Miss Belladonna, Miss Xiao Long, Qrow. This is Penny, Atlas's top HUNTRESS agent, the protector of Mantle." Penny waved at them with a large smile and Weiss hand to keep herself from rolling her eyes as Ruby waved back.</p>
<p>"Glad to see you're still part human James," Qrow said as he shoved his hand into his pockets. Ironwood in turn rubbed his left wrist with a small smile on his face. </p>
<p>"Luckily I haven't been in need of any more bionic parts," he joked. He sat down at his desk and looked over the group. "Why are you all in Atlas?" </p>
<p>"We have some concerns," Ruby started slowly, "About the safety of a certain asset Atlas University has been put in charge of. We were sent by Ozpin to retrieve it and bring it back to Vale." </p>
<p>He nodded along to her words, stroking his beard as he listened. "The relic?" he asked. Ruby nodded and he closed his eyes. "I understand Ozpin is wary of what might happen to it, but Atlas is the most technologically advanced kingdom in all of Remnant. Whatever threats there may be stand no chance against us. </p>
<p>He placed me in charge of the safety of the relic many years ago and to this day, I have yet to let anything happen to it. If there is something going on that I'm unaware of, he can come fill me in and take it himself."</p>
<p>"I believe that is why he sent me," Oscar said as he walked into Ironwood's office. "It is good to meet you General. My name is Oscar. Ozpin has taken me in as his apprentice and I am here to answer any questions you have on his behalf."</p>
<p>Ironwood stared Oscar down for a moment before he asked, "Why does Oz want to take the relic from Atlas?" Weiss watched as Oscar walked in front of them and noted how he stood similar to the way Ozpin did. </p>
<p>"We have recently learned that the GRIMM might be even more dangerous than we first thought. At first, their attacks seemed uncoordinated and messy, but now that we're taking a closer look, they all have a purpose that gets them closer to the relics. For the security of everyone on Remnant, Ozpin wants all of the relics to be collected and brought to Vale for better protection and surveillance." Oscar never wavered in his speech and Weiss was impressed from how much a few days with Ozpin helped the boy grow.</p>
<p>Ironwood glanced over the boy again. He stood and walked to the windows at the back of his office. "I see," he said quietly. Everyone waited in tense silence as he stared out over Atlas. He sighed before turning back to the group. "I'll do my best to get you the relic. It will take me some time to secure it. The vault we hid it in is extremely difficult to get into. When I have it, I will inform you all and hand it over. Until then, I have work to do. Penny, please show our guest off the campus," he said as he took a seat at his desk. </p>
<p>Weiss saw everyone glance at Ruby and watched as she nodded. They all followed Penny out of the room and slowly made their way out of the university. </p>
<p> </p>
<p>"Hurry up and change," Weiss said to Ruby through the door of her bathroom. The two had separated from the group in order to get Ruby warmer clothes and stop at Weiss's apartment before Winter picked them up for dinner. </p>
<p>"I'm coming!" she called. Weiss heard a crash. "In a minute!" She groaned and walked out of her bedroom. </p>
<p>"Don't break anything else!" she warned. When she got to her living room there was a knock on the door. Weiss opened it with a smile. "Come in," she told her sister. She shut the door as Winter looked around. "Ruby will be right out. She's changing into warmer clothes."</p>
<p>Winter nodded as she turned to her. The sisters stared at each other for a moment. "How have you been recently? It feels like forever since I last saw you," Winter said with a small smile.</p>
<p>Weiss thought back on the past few months. Meeting Ruby, Yang losing her arm, getting hurt herself, spending time with Ruby, saving Argus. "I've been well," she said with a smile. "Work has had me traveling a lot recently, but I don't mind much. Ruby has been by my side through most of it which has been nice." </p>
<p>"I'm sure it would be. You two get along well from what I can see," Winter said as she clasped her hands behind her back. </p>
<p>"Most of the time," Weiss said as she thought of all the times Ruby got on her nerves. </p>
<p>The sound of boots making their way to the living room caused both Schnee sisters to turn their heads. "Hi!" Ruby said as she popped her head around the corner. "I hope I didn't make you guys wait too long." </p>
<p>"Not at all," Winter said with a smile. Ruby walked over to them with Weiss's jacket in hand. </p>
<p>"You forgot this in your bedroom," she said as she held it up to her. </p>
<p>Weiss smiled at her and said, "Thank you Ruby." She turned her back to her and let Ruby put it on for her. She blushed as Ruby planted a small kiss on her cheek. </p>
<p>Winter cleared her throat and got both of their attention. "Shall we get going?"</p>
<p>"Of course," Ruby said with a smile as she grabbed Weiss's hand and dragged her to the door. Weiss rolled her eyes with a smile as she followed her. She heard Winter chuckle slightly as she walked after them. Once they got into Winter's car, Ruby asked, "Where are we gonna eat?"</p>
<p>"I figured we could head to Atlas Fine Dining. It was one of Weiss's favorites growing up," Winter said as she glanced at Weiss through the corner of her eyes. Weiss smiled at her sister as they drove away. "How have things been going for the two of you? Weiss hasn't told me much about you Ruby."</p>
<p>Weiss turned to look at Ruby in the backseat. "We have been going steady," she said to her sister.</p>
<p>"I know she doesn't act like it, but Weiss can be super nice sometimes. She'll run her fingers through my hair if I ask nice enough and let me hold her when we spend the night together," Ruby rambled with a smile.</p>
<p>"Ruby!" Weiss shrieked. Winter laughed and Weiss could feel herself start to blush.</p>
<p>"But other times she's like that and scolds me and calls me a dunce or a dolt. I like when she's nice better." Ruby grabbed Weiss's hand over the center console with a small smile. She pulled her hand to her lips and kissed her knuckles. </p>
<p>Weiss blushed as she pulled her hand away from her, crossing her arms. Ruby laughed and leaned back in her seat. Winter smiled at her younger sister and made the turn into the restaurant parking lot. She parked the car and shut off its engine. They got out of the car together and made their way into the building.</p>
<p>"Table for Schnee," Winter said to the recipsinost. The woman nodded and walked them over to a table. </p>
<p>They took their seats as she put menus on the table. "A server will be by to take your order," she said before she left. Weiss picked up a menu and handed it to Ruby, already knowing what she wanted to get.</p>
<p>She watched as her pretend girlfriend went over the menu. Ruby leaned closer to her and asked, "What is that thing?" Weiss rolled her eyes and read over her shoulder.</p>
<p>"You won't like it," she told her, flipping through the pages to get to what she was looking for. "Here," she said pointing at the menu, "This is more your style." </p>
<p>Ruby smiled at her. "Thank you Weiss." Weiss smiled at her and rolled her eyes. Humming she took a sip of water. Her eyes landed on Winter as her fingers drummed on the table. </p>
<p>"How have you been Winter? You haven't talked much about yourself," Weiss noted as she put her glass down. </p>
<p>Her sister took a sip of water before answering. "I've been doing well. Most days I stay late training with the Ace Ops if I'm not on a mission for Ironwood. I try my best to spend some time with Mother or Whitley, but they are busy and I understand that. I'm glad we can spend this time together while you're here, both of you. Weiss never really brought anyone home so it's truly an honor to get to meet you Ruby."</p>
<p>Ruby smiled at her as their waiter came by. They placed their orders and waited patiently for the food to come. Ruby started to get bored after a while which was evident to Weiss as she watched her play with her utensils. </p>
<p>When she started to smack her spoon on her wrist, Weiss grabbed her hand. "Stop that," she told her. Ruby pouted but put the spoon down regardless. Weiss rolled her eyes and said, "Thank you Ruby." The younger girl smiled at her and grabbed her hand.</p>
<p>"Here is your food," the waiter said as he placed their meals on the table. Winter nodded at the man but before he left, asked for a bottle of wine. They enjoyed their meals and conversation, Weiss getting slightly buzzed from the wine she drank.</p>
<p>"I'll give you a ride back to your place," Winter said as they finished their meals.</p>
<p>"Thank you," Weiss said as she got to her feet. She took out her wallet to pay for the food, but her sister beat her to it. She smiled at her and grabbed her jacket. Ruby grabbed her hand after she put her jacket on. </p>
<p>They walked out of the restaurant and to Winter's car. Weiss slid into the backseat with Ruby and leaned her head on her shoulder as she took a seat next to her. She hummed in appreciation of the warmth that came from her. Ruby placed her hand on her thigh and rubbed her thumb back and forth. </p>
<p>She wasn't sure how long they were in the car, but they got to her apartment building soon enough. She said goodnight to her sister and let Ruby bring her up to her apartment. She handed her keys to her and let her open the door for her. </p>
<p>She wrapped her arm around her waist as she led Weiss into her apartment. Weiss leaned into her grasp and put her arm over her shoulder. Ruby helped her stumble her way to her bedroom and pull off her jacket. </p>
<p>Weiss shivered at the cold temperature in her bedroom and turned to Ruby. She slung her arms around her shoulders and buried her face in her neck. "Ruby," she muttered against her skin. She felt her shudder beneath her and smiled. "Ruby," she whispered into her ear. </p>
<p>She leaned back onto her bed and dragged Ruby down with her. She landed on top of her and Weiss smiled. Her hands came up to cup Ruby's face. She slowly leaned up and kissed Ruby on the lips. Her chest exploded in warmth as Ruby kissed her back.</p>
<p>She broke off the kiss when her lungs screamed for air. Her face was on fire and she guessed her skin was the same shade as Ruby's blushing face. She pulled Ruby close to her and wrapped her arms around her in a hug. It didn't take her long to fall asleep in her arms.</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>If you guys have requests for other stories, I'll happily take them. I already have a pirate au request and will start working on it soon.</p></blockquote></div></div>
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